Trial Lawyers Fight Back on Malpractice
from The Boston Globe Political Intelligence Blog, Sept. 22, 2009
With President Obama opening the door a crack to tort reform as part of a health care overhaul, the nation's trial lawyers are trying to slam it shut again. The American Association for Justice announced it is launching what it called the first phase of a nationwide ad campaign "to educate lawmakers about the epidemic of preventable medical errors and how tort law changes won't lower costs or cover the uninsured." More

Drugmaker Reports Shortage of Kids' Tamiflu
from WFAA-TV, Sept. 24, 2009
Pharmacies in North Texas are running out of the liquid form of Tamiflu for children. The drug is the first line of treatment for H1N1 virus (also known as the swine flu) and seasonal flu. According to the maker of Tamiflu, Roche Holdings, there's a shortage of the children's version because of the increased demand for the drug. More

TMA Urges Congress, President Obama to Protect Patients from Insurer Business Tactics
from Medical News Today, Sept, 28, 2009
The Texas Medical Association is urging President Obama and the U.S. Congress to fix what's wrong and keep's what good in America's health care. "On the list of things that need to be fixed are the tactics health insurers use to avoid paying our patients' health care costs," said TMA President William H. Fleming III, MD. "It's time Congress holds health insurers accountable for the promises they make to the patients who pay ever-increasing premiums for less and less coverage." More

High Cost of Medicare Surprising to Seniors
from CBS11-TV, Sept. 24, 2009
There's only one way to say it. Medicare is cheap. The government doesn't pay a lot to reimburse doctors and doctors don't have to take Medicare patients. So why are you paying all that money into Medicare? That's what a Rockwall man wants to know. More

Do Insurers Meddle in Your Medical Care?
from CNN Money, Sept. 24, 2009
Have you ever wondered why your doctor has you come back two or three times to complete a check-up instead of wrapping it up in one visit? Doctors candidly admit that it's about money. And they blame insurers for "conditioning" them to practice medicine this way, meaning less efficiently than they believe they should. More

Why Medical Malpractice if Off Limits
from The Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2009
Eliminating defensive medicine could save upwards of $200 billion in health-care costs annually, according to estimates by the American Medical Association and others. The cure is a reliable medical malpractice system that patients, doctors and the general public can trust. But this is the one reform Washington will not seriously consider. More

Dr. Susan Curling Seeks Republican Nomination for Texas House
from Kingwood.com, Sept. 24, 2009
A life-long Republican, Dr. Susan Curling is vying to replace outgoing State Representative, Joe Crabb, who recently announced that he would not seek re-election. "It is with great enthusiasm that I announce my candidacy for Texas House District 127," said Dr. Curling. "Having been a resident and physician in the Humble-Kingwood area for over 20 years, I have built countless trusting relationships in our community that will prove invaluable in Austin." Dr. Curling is a member of the Texas Medical Association. More

Fort Worth Girl Not Given Tamiflu, Dies of Flu
from WFAA-TV, Sept. 29, 2009
This video clip investigates Fort Worth eight grader Chloe Lindsey, who came down with a fever. She was diagnosed with the flu Friday and died Sunday. The 14 year old didn't get Tamiflu at her doctor's visit because she wasn't considered high risk. More

Opinion: Doctors' Referrals Need Austin's Attention
from The Dallas Morning News, Sept. 28, 2009
While looking at home health care, Texas lawmakers also should revisit the ease with which doctors refer patients to clinics they have an ownership interest in. We don't doubt that many physicians are above board in recommending tests. Still, a conflict of interest is bred into the referral, and patients should be aware. More

Cost of Care: High Prices, Red Tape Fuel Doctor's Move
from The Dallas Morning News, Sept. 28, 2009
Dr. Bill Walton is leaving Dallas because of the pressures and costs of running his solo practice, including longer hours and lower pay. His experience shows why fewer medical students are entering primary care, and why family doctors are becoming an endangered species. More

Study: Cost Higher if Health Reform Fails
from The Houston Chronicle, Sept. 29, 2009
A week after a Texas agency reported health care reform legislation would cost the state's Medicaid program an extra $20 billion over the next 10 years, a non-partisan foundation says inaction will exact a greater price. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation projects that by 2019, Texas' ranks of uninsured, public program spending and individual and employee health care expenses will balloon if reform isn't passed. More

Pathologist Shortage Raises Concerns About Autopsies
from The Associated Press via Houston Chronicle, Sept. 30, 2009
Some medical examiners in Texas have relied on the work of medical school interns, unlicensed doctors and others with questionable expertise - even for complex capital murder cases, according to a newspaper report. More

GAO Rreport: Millions in Fraud, Drug Abuse Clog Medicaid
from USA Today, Sept 29, 2009
As Congress debates the government's role in health care, a report out Wednesday finds that state and federal officials failed to detect millions of dollars in Medicaid prescription drug abuse. An audit of the government program in five large states found about 65,000 instances of beneficiaries improperly obtaining potentially addictive drugs at a cost of about $65 million during 2006 and 2007. More

Immunization Deadline Looms for Texas Students
from KXXV-TV, Sept. 30, 2009
Your student could be sent home from school Thursday if his or her vaccinations are not up to state requirements. Thursday is the deadline for kindergartners and seventh-graders to meet new state vaccination requirements. State law requires students who have not received the required shots or a medical waver to be barred from attending school. More

Push to get Texas Teens to Eat Better Isn't Bearing Fruit
from The Houston Chronicle, Sept. 29, 2009
Only 8 percent of Texas teens are eating enough fruits and vegetables, a new report finds, despite efforts to stock school cafeterias with healthier foods. Nine out of 10 American high schoolers are short on fruits and veggies, which is only a slightly better rate than their Texas counterparts, according to a survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The recommended daily minimum is more than two cups of vegetables and two cups of fruit. More

Third Flu Tent Opens at Dell Children's as Volumes Stay High
from The Austin American-Statesman, Sept. 30, 2009
Doctors and nurses are now seeing patients in a third tent outside the emergency department at Dell Children’s Medical Center to handle steady high volumes of children complaining of flu. Two tents, which went up Sept. 21 after swine flu cases spiked at the hospital, have proved to be "awesomely efficient," hospital officials said, with the average patient being treated and sent home in about 30 minutes. The third has now opened. More