Thinking About Medicine

female doctor examining body

Government subsidizes hospitals who perpetuate personal bankruptcy

The United States government subsidies the corporate medical complex. Many hospitals and insurance companies are not for profit so they don’t pay taxes. Yet these same hospitals send bills to debt collectors. Medical debt is the leading cause of personal bankruptcy.

A doctor is holding an x-ray and examining

The Joint Commission are view by hospitals as extortionists

Hospitals are credentialed by The Joint Commission. The Joint Commission offers consulting services through Joint Commission Resources (https://www.jcrinc.com/about-us/our-team). The consultants charge exorbitant fees to hospitals to pass The Joint Commission credentialing. Some hospital administrators view this like a extortion protection scheme. By paying Joint Commission consultants, you get protection from The Joint Commission credentialing process…

A doctor performing a test on a woman

Hospitals act as local monopolies which raises prices for consumers

Investors like companies with moats which means barriers to entry or competition. However, consumers are hurt by these barriers to competition because they pay higher prices. Hospitals build local moats to decrease competition. They lobbied for federal legislation to block competing hospitals. In fact, doctors are not allow to start new hospitals to compete with…

doctor with brain xray

Doctors performing bias studies for profits diminishes study credibility

Doctors are required to disclosed any conflicts including financial conflicts when publishing studies. But journals have varying criteria for disclosures and there is no enforcement for lack of disclosures. You can find articles published around the same time period, where the same doctors where have no disclosures while others have more extensive disclosures. Journal editorial…

About Us

The modern pill is an allegory of our current healthcare system. It symbolizes our hope for a cure, wellness, and even immortality. Yet we don’t understand what goes into making our modern medicine. We essentially hope that our modern pills will make us better and not harm us.