Bill Moyers Journal: Money Driven Medicine

Click on the 'watch video' link for this superbly edited documentary in depth look at what is really going on behind the US health care doors.

The film MONEY-DRIVEN MEDICINE reveals how a profit-hungry medical-industrial complex has turned health care into a system that squanders millions of dollars on unnecessary tests, unproven and sometimes unwanted procedures and overpriced prescription drugs. Oscar-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney has teamed up with producers Peter Bull, Chris Matonti, and director Andy Fredericks to produce a film based on Maggie Mahar's powerful book MONEY-DRIVEN MEDICINE.

After covering the health care industry for years as a financial journalist, Mahar wanted to write a book examining the system from the perspective of doctors and patients. The response from the doctors she contacted was overwhelming — five out of six called her back. The film brings their stories to the screen, portraying an industry where corporate profits often get in the way of care.

Ask Maggie Mahar about health care reform
As the JOURNAL continues it's coverage of health care and the debate over reform, we invite you to submit your questions to Maggie Mahar on the blog. We'll get you her answers after the premiere of Academy Award winning filmmaker Alex Gibney's documentary, MONEY-DRIVEN MEDICINE, which will be broadcast next Friday, August 28 on the JOURNAL.

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/08282009/profile.html

By ceebee
Posted August 29, 2009 at 8:39 am
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Thanks for the post ... anyone interested in how the political aspects of this are playing out should read Matt Taibbi's latest article in Rolling Stone.

http://www.rollingstone.com/nationalaffairs/index.php/2009/08/19/matt-taibb i-on-health-care-reform-sick-and-wrong/

By martzj
Posted August 29, 2009 at 1:08 pm
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Good video link ceebee. And, unfortunately, it reinforces my continuing belief in 'watch what they are doing, not what they are saying' in Congress. All this 'we need more time, what's the big rush to have a bill ready before our August vacation?' Just more of the same.....a congressional body that has been working for it's true power base since I was born....their major campaign contributors and million dollar lobby interests. If we had a congress that truly was fighting for individual health care access rights, it would've been etched in stone decades ago.

Not sure everyone is aware that US health care industry has been congressionally approved to function as the only other monopoly beside the baseball monopoly (which is federally funded, to an extent). Congress has been stealthily passing acres of middle of the night deregulations so that health industry can steamroll whomever and wherever...except for Congressional members themselves of course, who have the gold standard insurance along with voting for yearly salary increases for themselves, even during years when the rest of gov't staff endure salary freezes.

The good thing that has come out thanks to the rise of YouTube, facebook, internet fact checkers is that many old school chrony, behind the door practices are becoming transparent to the general public.

There is a voting majority on both R and D sides now, so single-payer care could easily pass....Still Congress is playing power games for themselves, even though there is now no visible excuse for them to push for incredibly expensive private insurance bodies over expanding Medicare/Medicaid type coverage to all citizens who want it.

If this industry push to get Congress to mandate all US citizens to buy into private health insurance or face tax penalties passes, this country is going down financially. We can't afford private UNREGULATED health monopoly calling all the shots. They will bleed us dry.

By ceebee
Posted August 30, 2009 at 11:38 pm
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right on! all of this also points to the need for campaign finance reform. if they don't get the donations from corporations... then maybe congress will finally put some of our basic interests and needs first. term limits would be nice also.

By ckspring
Posted August 31, 2009 at 10:10 am
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Let's get more doctors and tort reform if we want to raise health care quality and lower costs. And let's also start realizing the unions and "community organizers" pushing health care reform are also "special interests" who are putting tremendous pressure on Congress to get what they want, which is not all about helping the "little guy." Do we really think our current overburdened health care system can add thousands more patients to our health care system and produce better quality care for a lower price? The economics and logistics just don't work.

By martzj
Posted August 31, 2009 at 11:08 am
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Speaking in terms of community health, I would be interested in seeing a federal gov't program that pays medical students entire medical school degree loan expenses...provided they sign onto a charter to work as a general care practitioner, or family care doctor for 20 years. What about a gov't subsidized PCP annual salary for these new doctors that allows them to be sent anywhere in the US without the onus of rural doctors making far less than big city doctors......as in, there is a single annual salary for all these gov't PCPs that pays them a large enough amount that going into a speciality is much less alluring to them.

We need far more family doctors out there....this is where a free market fails....in an area like health care, which should be open and widely available to all. At present, family docs are so poorly reimbursed that they are dropping out of practices, especially in rural areas with populations that just cannot support a medical practice.

Good grief! Gov't pays farmers NOT to grow certain crops....why can't it step into paying medical students to choose general practice over specialist to help raise our low preventative health care standards and infant mortality rates? This seems a no-brainer to me.
Pave the way for GPs to get straight into practice without a penny of med school debt, along w a substantial annual salary. Med students who choose specialty medicine foot their own bills all the way through. We have a glut of overpriced specialists already.

By ckspring
Posted September 1, 2009 at 10:56 am
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I couldn't agree more. Then if we can get tort reform with a reasonable cap so doctors aren't paying ridiculous malpractice premiums, the really good specialists will continue practicing in the "high risk" specialties and will not run unnecessary tests just to protect themselves from being sued.

By martzj
Posted September 1, 2009 at 6:04 pm
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'Salaried' physicians in a single-payer system.....That is the only way to gradually 'disappear' the grotesque for-profit infestation of private health insurance. As long as this remains in place, there is no incentive for the medical community to shift patient care and safety to the top priority. It is #4 now at best. Our children are never going to be safe until we force this through....We have to create incentives that shift the doctors away from $ and back towards patient attention. It's working in France, Netherlands, UK, Canada....oh, and Costa Rica.

There are many different breeds of doctors....General practitioners are not the same temperament as ER docs, surgeons, high risk specialists. What if there were a way to incentivise medical students to flock to GP certification? Heavily subsidized 'wellness' tracking for each patient by a GP so that the drs are paid to spend time informing patients in greater depth?

This could be the greatest battle of 21st century America. It would be a superb battle if one were actually being fought. How unfortunate that none of us have a seat at those health 'reform' tables. We could be the only superpower to ever place human life value higher than lining the pockets of the very few extremely powerful. We have a Congress on vacation.....I believe they sold us out before they even convened. I believe when Congress reconvenes we will be informed everyone now will be forced to sign onto an insurance company or face stiff penalties. (what entity will collect said penalties?)

Insurance companies have probably already won. Please understand.....this is ALL about money. It is not about health care. It has never been about individual health care for all. Never. Just because citizens will be forced to buy health insurance does not mean ANY enhanced quality of care will suddenly be available. It just means that for-profit will be funneling more $ into their coffers while continuing to decline care under the guise of 'rationing'.

We are already being treated to the lasted spin from lobbyists....that there aren't enough doctors to treat everyone if suddenly everyone has access to care through universal health coverage. What blarney.

Jaynie

By ceebee
Posted September 3, 2009 at 11:55 pm
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and besides watching Money Driven Medicine... I also watched Critical Condition on Moyers' website. Very compelling and very disheartening. What have we become?

Welcome to Inspire!

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