UPDATE: Here are the public records for the case. However, it was the filthy conditions, described in nauseating detail—and the threat they posed to meat consumers—that caused a public furor. In this case, the government moved to protect the public because a subset of meat packers was putting profit above public health. public outcry caused the government to step in and regulate the industry. Before Health IT Certification. MORE

Wages increased about 2.6%, and consumer prices, 1.3%, based on the 2019 Segal Health Plan Cost Trend Survey. Over the ten years 2006 to 2016, deductibles increased an average of 176% and coinsurance, 67%. Wage growth over that decade was relatively flat, as workers covered by insurance through employers traded off health benefits for wage increases. The bottom line for health consumers: prescription abandonment rises as patient out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy increase. MORE

I say this with some confidence, as Jack Dorsey posted the first tweet in March, 2006. My first tweet was four months later in July 2006. It described a conversation I was having with an employee of a hospital who saw the work that our organization does to improve health in our communities (and reduce hospital volume) as deliberately “harming hospitals.” Uncategorized Health Policy VBPI have been an occasional Twitter user for a long time. MORE

More than twice as many Black men believe that in 2020 compared with 2006. More than four times as many Black women believe that it’s a bad time to be Black in America in 2020 versus 2011, we learn from The Undefeated Survey on Race and Health from Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF). MORE

This sentiment has been relatively stable since 2000 except for two big outlying years: a spike of 69% in 2006, and a low-point in 2003 of 42%. In 2006, Medicare Part D launched, which may have boosted consumers’ faith in Federal healthcare programs. But while there’s majority support for universal health care, we should think broadly about this concept at this moment. This asked people whether they would prefer a government-run health system. MORE

“Doc Tom” Ferguson (1943 – 2006) was a Family Medicine physician, a visionary and pioneer who sought to empower patients to use online resources, embraced patient contribution, and aimed for professionals to be equal partners with patients. Doc Tom was Medical Editor for Millennium Whole Earth Catalog and Health Online: How To Find Health Information, Support Groups, And Self Help Communities In Cyberspace. MORE

years, according to data shared by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For insights into that trend of growing male mortality, search for my posts on the Deaths of Despair here on Health Populi). MORE