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CVS Releases Cheaper Alternative to the EpiPen
For people with severe allergies, self-administered epinephrine injectors like the EpiPen can be life-saving devices. Recently, however, the maker of the EpiPen received widespread criticism when it was revealed that the company had increased the price of the epinephrine injectors by more than 400 percent over a period of 12 years. These massive price hikes Continue Reading..
NYC Hospitals Receive Poor Safety Grades in National Survey
In 2016, nonprofit patient safety organization The Leapfrog Group conducted a nationwide survey of America’s hospitals that graded their safety records based on 30 different metrics including patient injuries, accidents and infections. The hospitals were assigned numerical scores which were later converted into letter grades. In total, more than 2,600 hospitals were graded in the Continue Reading
Use Medicare’s Hospital Compare Tool to Your Advantage
Not all hospitals are created equal. Unfortunately, patients don’t always know which hospitals in their area have good reputations, and which ones are regarded less favorably. This can be especially problematic if you’ve just relocated to a new place and aren’t familiar with the local healthcare facilities. Fortunately, Medicare has created a tool to help Cont...
Researchers Find Web-Based Tools Can Reduce Medical Errors
Modern medical treatment often involves a collaborative effort between multiple physicians and healthcare professionals. When patient care is handed-off from one clinician to another, possibilities arise for failures in communication that can ultimately lead to dangerous medical errors. A doctor might neglect to mention an allergy or drug sensitivity, for example. Healthcare experts know these Continue Reading
Certificate of Need Laws Leave Patients with Fewer Options
Certificate of need laws refer to a program that state legislators put in place to govern the “establishment, construction, renovation and major medical equipment acquisitions of health care facilities, such as hospitals, nursing homes, home care agencies, and diagnostic and treatment centers,” according to the New York State Department of Health. Basically, this means that
Cyberchondria: A Dangerous Trend in Self-Diagnosis
The Internet has granted us unprecedented access to information about all sorts of things, including common medical ailments. Earlier this year, Google revealed that roughly 1 percent of all its searches (that’s millions of searches) are symptom-related health inquiries. Sites like WebMD have made it easier than ever for people to self-diagnose ailments before visiting Conti...