healthcare | Atlas.md | EMR Software for Concierge Medicine

Posted by: AtlasMD

August 12, 2013

Dr. Josh Breaks Down Every Facet Of Direct Care In His Latest Interview

The Objective Standard spoke with Dr. Josh and captured a comprehensive, and digestible, overview of direct care. The conversation was conducted and transcribed by journalist Ari Armstrong and is currently available as a PDF file for private use and distribution. We’re excited to share it personally through this week’s Atlas MD newsletter (will be included as an attachment). If you haven’t signed up for our weekly direct care updates, you can do so here (make sure to check the newsletter box). Or, if you like, email hello[at]atlas.md to request your copy of the interview.

The Objective Standard is a quarterly periodical written from an Objectivist perspective (Objectivism being Ayn Rand’s philosophy of reason, egoism, and laissez-faire capitalism). Josh’s interview is slated for Fall publication.

Posted by: AtlasMD

August 1, 2013

New App From Pay-Pal Founder Wants To Use Big Data To Improve Healthcare

A ZD Net post reports that during a fireside chat with AllThingsD’s Kara Swisher at the 2013 Data Driven Conference on Wednesday, PayPal co-founder Max Levchin described the inspiration behind his latest startup, Glow. Glow is a mobile app launched earlier this year that’s trying to improve fertility using “big data.” Right now, the app quite literally wants to help women get pregnant, which in such layman’s terms sounds like a parody. But Levchin is serious that this type of app can lead to better doctor-patient decision making, and ultimately trim wasted spending. He’s stated that the company’s goal is to expand into other niches in the healthcare field in order to accomplish this.

Posted by: AtlasMD

July 24, 2013

Are Doctors Passing The Buck On Healthcare Costs?

Eryn Brown of the LA Times posted an article yesterday claiming that physicians are concerned about skyrocketing healthcare costs. However, according to survey results released earlier in the week, most doctors don’t believe they have a “major responsibility” for reducing those costs.

Posted by: AtlasMD

July 19, 2013

Congress’ Actions Speak Louder Than Words

So we came across some share-worthy news today. Here’s a quote from CMT, referencing Congressional healthcare benefits:

“One of the most unusual perks may come from the Office of the Attending Physician of the United States Congress. For an annual fee of $503, House and Senate members can designate the official congressional physician to be their primary care doctor — meaning they never have to leave Capitol Hill, deal with crowded doctor’s offices or be subject to the same type of care from a doctor as the rest of us.”

This sounds kind of like their own personal doctor, that’s available 24/7, for a fixed yearly price (that’s about a third of what we charge hard working Americans), who provides primary care, same day, with no waits, who fields calls directly… which sounds a lot like what we offer at Atlas MD.

Posted by: AtlasMD

July 17, 2013

Healthcare Startup Helps Hospitals Launch Their Own Health Insurance Plans

The Washington Post reported on a healthcare provider facing rising insurance premiums. Instead of passing on the price increase to their employees, who would begrudge the extra cost, MedStar Health decided to offer their own insurance plan that would cover employees at their hospitals and a small network of providers. This is revolutionary, as the article states, “All of a sudden, the health system did not just send out insurance claims — it also received them… Insurance plans and hospitals are typically at loggerheads. They squabble over claims that the hospitals submit and insurers sometimes deny.” Eric Wagner, a MedStar vice president, said, “[Health insurers] make their money by not paying for health care to be delivered. We make our money by delivering care. There’s always been a natural tension.” But now a start-up in Northern Virginia named Evolent Health promises to teach hospital networks like MedStar Health how to build a health insurance plan from the ground up.

Posted by: AtlasMD

July 15, 2013

The Atlantic Advocates Healthcare Accountability

Richard Gunderman wrote a phenomenal essay for The Atlantic earlier this month. In it he explains the importance of accountable health care, claiming “We can be our best only if we bear at least some of the costs of the choices we make.” It is accepted that healthcare costs have within the last few years become the single most common cause of personal bankruptcy in the U.S. Of course, the natural reaction is to think of the indebted patients as victims, and hospitals as greedy predators. It’s not like the patients tried to get sick to they could taken on expensive medical care. Meanwhile hospitals retrofitted with marbled lobbies and elaborate amenities are indicative of surplus wealth. So Gunderman begs the question, “Who could feel sympathy for a billion-dollar corporation?”

However, he also points out that if patients are to be forgiven of their debts, we might run out of hospitals to turn to. That’s because a hospital that liberally provides free care will soon find itself overrun with patients, while the other hospitals fail to generate revenues that exceed their costs, and go out of business (this is hypothetical, but still a valid point).

Posted by: AtlasMD

May 24, 2013

David Shaywitz Asks Healthcare Customer Service, Why Not Us?

David Shaywitz wanted to get a flu shot for his child. So he used an app to find a location. The situation went awry and he wrote about it for Forbes. He was misdirected to a location that could not vaccinate his children, and then got the “we’ll transfer you to so-and-so” runaround at his own doctor’s office, culminating in multiple visits and “you’ve-got-to-be-kidding”-length waits.

Through his unfortunate experience he made three brilliant observations:

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