Patients Are Piling Up Credit Card Debt – Doctors, Hospitals, CVS*, and Other Grifters.

The Medical-Industrial Complex is swarming with grifters. This is to be expected when you build a purposefully complex system designed to advance profitability for small and large players alike. The $4T operation bankrolling 1 in 5 American workers is, in large part, a hidden economy, one built by professional tricksters, designed by Fortune 100 firms […]

PBM’s – Their Origins and Parentage.

With the controversy swirling over insulin pricing, and sticker shock for seniors meeting deductibles on their Medicare Part D choices, it’s useful to shine a light on PBM’s – their origins and parentage. They would, of course, prefer to remain in the shadows, managing a vast array of legal kickbacks with others within the Medical-Industrial […]

Will the Health Care Bubble Burst in 2019?

source Mike Magee In the dead heat of the summer of 2018, we’re experiencing an epic “non-real fight” over “non-real work” with potential real consequences in 2019. The initial battle lines were drawn some months back when Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon recognized a unique opportunity to dip into the wasteful troughs of […]

Where will reform come next, and who will lead the way?

Mike Magee “On résiste à l’invasion des armées; on ne résiste pas à l’invasion des idées.” – Victor Hugo. It’s useful for all health professionals to reflect on the words of this 19th century French writer. The translation: “Greater than the tread of mighty armies is an idea whose time has come.” As the AEI […]

The Basics of Pharma Kickbacks – Opaque & Complex

Mike Magee With great fanfare, the New York Times announced this week that UnitedHealthcare “would stop keeping millions of dollars in discounts it gets from drug companies and share them with its customers.” For awhile, pharma, insurers, pharmacies and PBMs have been pointing fingers at each other over escalating costs. That’s become more difficult of […]

Disrupter in Chief – CVS, Aetna, or Amazon?

Mike Magee In 1964, a purveyor of general merchandise based in Rhode Island, coalesced 17 locations under one entity. They were focused on market data, inventory management, and economy of scale. Within five years, they were successful enough to have 40 locations, three with in-store pharmacies. Within another decade, they had standardized their information, data, […]

Retail Medical Clinics – The Disruptive Impact of Walmart

Mike Magee Mike Magee This week’s NEJM article on the expansion of retail clinics in the U.S. begins: “ In a tumultuous era of change propelled by public health policies and private entrepreneurial activity, the spread of retail clinics offering basic primary care, walk-in visits, extended hours, and lower prices than a doctor’s office or […]