The Medical Freedom Channel

“Simple adherence to basic medical treatment guidelines would save thousands of lives and $1.35 billion a year in medical costs, according to a large analysis of data from 260 hospitals. The report tracked Medicare patients hospitalized for pneumonia, coronary artery bypass graft surgery, heart attack, hip and knee replacement and heart failure, and compared patient recovery rates and cost data. About 224,000 patient records were analyzed by Premier Inc., a coalition of nonprofit hospitals, which is working with the federal government on measuring patient medical outcomes and costs. Those who pay for health care in the United States, primarily the government and private employers, are increasingly rewarding good patient care with better payments, as opposed to the current system which generally pays according to volume. Experts point out that more quality, safety and cost information is available for cars than for most health-care services.” (08/31/06)