Shock Therapy for the American Health Care System

Shock Therapy For the American Health Care System describes the problems of the health care system and offers a program of comprehensive reform that is more far-reaching than anything currently being proposed. From a veteran physician comes this remarkably clear-eyed look at what's wrong with how we adminster and pay for health care and what can be done to fix it. In Shock Therapy for the American Health Care System: Why Comprehensive Reform Is Needed, Dr. Robert Levine offers an easily understandable diagnosis of the problems plaguing our current health care infrastructure, with discussions that include the roles of various stakeholders-insurance companies, "big pharma," hospitals, health care providers, and patients. He also dispels a number of myths designed to make voters leery of any reform efforts. Levine's comprehensive plan addresses everything from bloated bureaucracies to unnecessary procedures to the handling of negligence and malpractice lawsuits/claims. Throughout, Levine backs his proposals with facts and comparisons to systems in various countries, and concludes that even now, with disaster looming, the ultimate goal of providing health insurance for every American is achievable and affordable.

ROBERT LEVINE, M.D., served as Chief of Neurology at Norwalk Hospital in Norwalk, Connecticut, for 22 years, and is now in private practice. He is also Associate Clinical Professor at Yale University School of Medicine.

Foreword Acknowledgments CHAPTER 1 Introduction Addressing the Myths about Health Care Reform CHAPTER 2 Evolution of the American Health Care System The Changing Physician, Organized Medicine, and Efforts at Health Care Reform CHAPTER 3 Evolution of the American Health Care System Hospitals, the Health Insurance Industry, the Pharmaceutical Industry, and the Medical Device Industry CHAPTER 4 Problems with the Current Health Care System CHAPTER 5 Malpractice and Medical Negligence CHAPTER 6 Comprehensive Health Care Reform CHAPTER 7 Proposals for U.S. Health Care Reform and a Brief Survey of Other Nations' Health Care Systems CHAPTER 8 Obstacles to Comprehensive Reform CHAPTER 9 Conclusion Notes Index About the Author