tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post7567162164891797324..comments2024-03-29T06:37:18.029-04:00Comments on Not Running a Hospital: Time to talk for the common goodPaul Levyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17065446378970179507noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-52315312392225118902011-08-17T16:02:10.247-04:002011-08-17T16:02:10.247-04:00The kind of thing I am discussing would be unlikel...The kind of thing I am discussing would be unlikely to violate the law; but, in any event, you can be protected by inviting someone from the AG's office to attend.Paul Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17065446378970179507noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-55710508494854608522011-08-17T16:01:07.499-04:002011-08-17T16:01:07.499-04:00I agree with your comments about talking for the c...I agree with your comments about talking for the common good. I suspect that one of the things that has prevented such conversations occurring is the lawyers raising concerns about anti-trust concerns.<br /> The Sherman Act enacted in 1890 has prevented any progress from being made in health care at a time when collaboration between hospitals and between hospitals and physicians is crucial to maintaining the delivery of quality health care at reasonable costs.Howardnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-12871896611758185202011-08-16T15:38:22.879-04:002011-08-16T15:38:22.879-04:00Paul, I have long admired you for seemingly tiltin...Paul, I have long admired you for seemingly tilting at windmills and then actually effecting change - but I fear you have met your match in the halls of Boston medical academia. Since not even the hospitals affiliated with Harvard appear to be willing to cooperate, how on earth could all the medical schools get together? <br />Once, on vacation in FL, I took a photograph of a giant (10 ft) pig with wings sitting in someone's front yard - I fear that when that pig flies, only then will the Boston academics cooperate.<br />And BTW, this is the view from outside Boston.<br /><br />nonlocal MDAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-542205407385085672011-08-16T13:58:27.734-04:002011-08-16T13:58:27.734-04:00One problem, I think, with regional resource shari...One problem, I think, with regional resource sharing by AMC’s is the wide variance in the profitability of various services. Everyone wants to do as much of the well paid work as possible. While you would know better than I, I’m told that hospitals make most of their inpatient profits from surgical procedures and cancer treatment. They usually lose money on trauma care and don’t make much from OBGYN, mental health and low to moderate acuity medical (as opposed to surgical) cases.<br /><br />I also suspect that the very presence of AMC’s increases healthcare costs as patients choose to access routine care at the high cost AMC because they perceive it as “better” care rather than at a much more cost-effective community hospital that can provide the routine care just as well. If there are more AMC’s in Boston than a rational marketplace can support financially, one or more of them probably should disappear or at least downsize and narrow their focus.Barry Carolnoreply@blogger.com