Archive for January 2014

Volume 92, Issue 4, 2014 (Op-Ed) One of the most contentious health care issues of the past decade—aside from debating the merits of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)—is whether there is a looming shortage of physicians and, if so, what its magnitude will be. What appears to be clear is that past studies and projections…

Volume 92, Issue 2, 2014 (Op-Ed) After more than two decades of paying physicians using a resource-based relative value scale (RBRVS) in combination with a spending limit, there has been a growing convergence of views in Congress about the next steps needed to reform how physicians are reimbursed by Medicare. Despite this and a decade…

Volume 94, Issue 3, 2014 (Op-Ed) VA Secretary Robert A. McDonald’s comment in May comparing the wait time for care at the VA with those at a Disney theme park may be one of the more politically tone-deaf remarks from a cabinet member in recent memory. The secretary was correct in saying that wait times…