Light at the End of the Tunnel?
July 25th 2008Bear markets behave a lot like bears: while they're around, they are unpredictable, but eventually they go back into hibernation. Although trying to predict when that will happen is a pointless exercise, several market watchers see some signs that the days of the bear may be numbered. One bullish sign, they say, is the amount of money sitting on the sidelines. Big-money institutional investors are sitting on piles of cash, which market gurus believe will fuel a sizable rally when it starts coming back into stocks.
Rx Drug Sales Hit by Slumping Economy
July 23rd 2008Sales of prescription drugs are growing at the slowest rate in more than a decade, reflecting the effects of a slowing economy and increased out-of-pocket costs to consumers. According to the healthcare research firm IMS Health, prescription volume for the first 5 months of this year grew by just 1.5%, the slowest growth rate since 1996. Volume actually declined in April by 0.2%, and in May by 0.1%. Forecasters see a further decline when June data become available later this month, resulting in negative growth for the entire second quarter, which hasn’t happened since 1994.
Creativity is Essential When Selling a Home in Down Market
July 22nd 2008If you've been thinking of putting your home up for sale, but you're hesitant because of today's soft real estate market, hesitate no more. That's the advice of real estate agents who are experienced at selling high-end homes. The key is not deciding whether or not to sell, but how to go about it.
Demand for Medical Properties Brings Investment Opportunities
July 21st 2008The real estate market is in a funk. Sales of residential homes have dropped, and even the demand for commercial real estate has slowed. But, in sharp contrast to those trends, the demand for medical properties is increasing and, according to a report by Grubb & Ellis Company, a real estate services and investment firm, are positioned to outperform other property types over the next 10 years.
New Drug Marketing Guidelines Limit Freebies
July 18th 2008Sorry, doctorsâ€"no more coffee mugs, no more pens, no more note pads, no more free restaurant meals. That's the gist of the new marketing code of ethics put out by PhRMA, the brand-name drug industry's trade group, which also suggests that drug companies cap speaking and consultant fees to doctors. Under the code, drug companies must also require doctors who are paid speakers or consultants to reveal those ties if they sit on committees that compile drug formularies or treatment guidelines.
Don't Get Personal When Selecting a Business Credit Card
July 16th 2008It happens every day. Consumers are bombarded with attractive offers to sign up for new credit cards. Businessesâ€"including physician practicesâ€"find themselves in the same position. According to David Goodman, vice president of communications for Advanta Corp., the small business credit card market is large and growing. Business credit cards can help physician practices simplify bookkeeping, keep business expenses separate from personal expenses, earn valuable rewards, and protect themselves from fraud.
Smoothing Patient Flow Offers Multiple Work/Life Benefits for Surgeons
July 14th 2008The topic of work/life balance is one that is near and dear to most people’s hearts, particularly surgeons. And according to a 2003 study published in the Annals of Surgery, which predicted a 50 percent shortage in some surgical specialties combined with an increased demand for surgeries, that work/life balance could become more precarious.
DC Blue Cross in the Crosshairs
July 11th 2008District of Columbia officials have launched an investigative probe into the affairs of CareFirst Blue Cross Blue Shield and, at the same time, have filed a lawsuit that would force the health insurer to donate millions of dollars to the community. CareFirst has members in DC, Northern Virginia, and parts of Maryland. Some observers believe the lawsuit and the probe, which has been given subpoena power, are partial payback for CareFirst’s failure to contribute an expected $5 million to a District universal healthcare program.
It Pays to Know Patients' Ability to Pay
July 10th 2008Want a snapshot of the reimbursement environment in today’s healthcare system? Nancy Davenport-Ennis, founder and CEO of Patient Advocate Foundation (PAF), describes it as lower reimbursement to physicians, hospitals and clinics, with simultaneous higher cost shifting to the individual consumer. “We’ve got the perfect storm,” she says, “and the individual consumer is simply not in a place where he or she can pay those dollars.”
Some Nurses Making More than Primary Docs
July 9th 2008One of the reasons often given for the nation’s shortage of primary care doctors is lower salaries, which lead medical school graduates to choose higher-paying specialties like cardiology and orthopedics. A recent report from the healthcare staffing firm Merritt Hawkins highlights one of the more unusual aspects of the primary-care income squeeze. According to the report, certified nurse anesthetists recruited by the firm had an average salary of $185,000, higher than family practice physicians, who averaged $172,000, and internists, who averaged $176,000.
Fund Fees Can Be a Crucial Investment Factor
July 8th 2008Reading a mutual fund prospectus may make your eyes glaze over, but it helps if you know what to look for. In the opinion of many fund experts, the most critical piece of information you'll find in the prospectus is the fund's expense ratio. Too many physician-investors focus instead on past performance, which can be misleading, while ignoring the fact that high fund expenses can blow a big hole in the most carefully planned portfolioâ€"an effect that can be intensified by a bear market.
Few Patients Use Online Doctor Ratings
July 7th 2008Online physician ratings…Consumer advocates push them, doctors don’t like them, and it turns out that most patients ignore them. A recent Harris Interactive poll commissioned by the California Healthcare Foundation shows that fewer than one-fourth of consumers look at online doctor ratings and only a tiny fraction—about 2%—have changed doctors based on knowledge they gained from a ratings site. The poll also showed that online ratings make little difference in consumer choices about hospitals and health insurance plans.
When Is the Right Time to Cut the Cord with a Patient?
July 2nd 2008In today’s world of reality-based television programming, the words “You’re fired” have become synonymous with Donald Trump as he weeds through candidates to determine who will become his next apprentice. Seldom are those words associated with the physician-patient relationship. In reality, however, their meaning—if not the actual words themselves—is conveyed more often than you might imagine. “Doctors want to help out,” explains Laura Dixon, BS, JD, RN, CPHRM, director, Department of Patient Safety, Western Region, for The Doctors Company, a physician-owned medical malpractice company. “They don’t recognize that it’s okay to send a patient on. It happens more frequently than they think.”
Preparing Your Portfolio for Retirement
July 1st 2008Investing during retirement is entirely different than investing for retirement. Different strategies are required for the accumulation and distribution phases. During the accumulation phase, it may be appropriate to take moderate risks in return for the prospects of higher returns. A young person with a very long time horizon until retirement and a high risk tolerance might invest her entire portfolio in stocks. During retirement, a much more conservative portfolio is generally called for. That's because the requirement to generate periodic withdrawals to produce income introduces a risk that the portfolio might self-liquidate.
Financial History Repeats Itself: Part III: Did My Brain Make Me Do It?
June 24th 2008Well-educated professionals that have financial advisors buy into recommendations for structured products, which are sure to generate a high fee, but may not benefit the investor. Think about the recent collateralized mortgage scandal. All of these investors are on the short end of the stick. Someone else is making money, but they're not. One way to describe these investors' actions is "optimism over realism." As Warren Buffet says, "It is optimism that is the enemy of the rational buyer." So why aren't many investors acting in their own best interestsâ€"that is, in a rational way? That is the subject of this three part series, "My brain made me do it."
Call-in Radio Programs Provide Docs with Professional Satisfaction
June 23rd 2008When the legendary Donna Summer sang that “they said it really loud, and they said it on the air, on the radio,” she knew the words she’d heard about her boyfriend’s feelings had to be true. After all, it was said on the radio. Today, physicians are sending a similar, truthful message, though not necessarily about the feelings we have for our loved ones. Instead, doctors are providing listeners and listener call-ins with useful medical information—often helping individuals “open up” about an illness or condition they might have been hesitant to speak about face to face. The airwaves are also providing physicians with another vehicle for reaching out to healthcare consumers.
Are Higher Medicaid Payments the Solution in Quality Care?
June 20th 2008Researchers have expended considerable time and effort in an attempt to quantify and describe the extent, character, and effects of disparities in the quality of healthcare received by racial and ethnic minorities in the US. An interesting article by James D. Reschovsky, PhD, and Ann S. O'Malley, MD, MPH, in the April 22 Health Affairs, titled “Do Primary Care Physicians Treating Minority Patients Report Problems Delivering High-Quality Care?” addressed this topic from the perspective of primary care physicians.
Universal Healthcare on Corporate Ballots
June 19th 2008Universal health care will appear on the shareholder proxy ballots of a number of major corporations this year, according to a New York Times report. The shareholder proposal does not address issues of health benefits for employees but instead asks the companies to develop principles for “comprehensive health care reform.” Although some companies have argued that shareholder voting is not the proper venue for the proposal, those offering it recently got the blessing of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has ordered several companies to put it on their proxy ballots.
Patient Web Exchanges Provide Benefits, Assistance for Physicians
June 18th 2008Patients online … making self-diagnoses … exchanging clinical information … what’s this world coming to? That’s not an exaggeration when compared to the way many physicians initially reacted to the advent of online health-focused patient Web exchanges about a decade ago. “When I first started off with this site [DailyStrength.org], I had the same fears that a lot of other physicians had; that people would be on these sites and exchanging misinformation,” recalls Sharon Orrange, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Southern California and a practicing internist. “Even when I joined as a medical advisor I was a little leery of it.”