- US is funding “gain of function” research: Scientists at Boston University have created a new and deadlier version of Omicron. But what if not all the mad scientists are on our side?
- New study finds that depressed people are not really “sadder, but wiser.” (NYT)
- US News hospital rankings are going woke.
- Featherbedding in the dialysis clinics; California unions have no shame. (WSJ)
Category: Doctors & Hospitals
Tuesday Links
- Obamacare’s Self-inflicted Wounds
- Henderson and Hooper: expensive drugs are a bargain.
- 9 reasons Americans consume so many mood-altering drugs.
- People who still practice (fear of Covid) social distancing have lower labor marketed participation and lower earnings.
- Commonwealth survey on why people choose Medicare Advantage insurance.
Births are Now Emergencies (Replete with ER Charges)
My mother told the story about my birth on a few occasions. She went into labor and my father drove her to the hospital 40 miles away. A nurse at the hospital assured my mother her baby wasn’t yet due. My mother explained she was in labor nonetheless. I don’t recall whether she called her doctor or if the hospital called him. How things have changed since I was born. The natural process that’s been occurring in humans for 200,000 to 300,000 years has now become a medical procedure requiring with emergency care.
Colonoscopy May Not be as Valuable As Once Thought
I’m overdue for a colonoscopy. The US Preventive Task Force advises Americans to have one every 10 years beginning at age 45. It has long been believed that if Americans followed that advice colon cancer would largely be a thing of the past. Now a European study casts doubt on that theory. “This is a…