Special Report: Behind a cancer-treatment firm's rosy survival claims

[The Straight Story]

Special Report: Behind a cancer-treatment firm's rosy survival claims

...

Vicky's cancer treatment was forestalled by an infection and other complications that kept her at Eastern Regional for three weeks. In July 2009, when she got back home, things changed. Despite Keith's calls, he said, CTCA did not schedule another appointment. As his wife got sicker, Keith, a former deputy sheriff in western Pennsylvania, was reduced to begging.

The oncology information specialist "said don't bring her here," he recalled. "I said you don't understand; we're going to lose her if you don't treat her. She told me I'd just have to accept that."

Vicky Hilborn never got another appointment with CTCA. She died on September 6, 2009, at age 48.

CTCA is not unique in turning away patients. A lot of doctors, hospitals and other healthcare providers in the United States decline to treat people who can't pay, or have inadequate insurance, among other reasons. What sets CTCA apart is that rejecting certain patients and, even more, culling some of its patients from its survival data lets the company tout in ads and post on its website patient outcomes that look dramatically better than they would if the company treated all comers. These are the rosy survival numbers that attract people like the Hilborns.

...

Carolyn Holmes, a former CTCA oncology information specialist in Tulsa, Oklahoma, said she and others routinely tried to turn away people who "were the wrong demographic" because they were less likely to have an insurance policy that CTCA preferred. Holmes said she would try to "let those people down easy."


http://news.yahoo.com/special-report-behind-cancer-treatment-firms-rosy-survival-125342638.html

[Lithos]

1. Another death panel

n/t

[KT2000]

2. something else that may affect treatment

is a hospital's ratings. If they show higher than average deaths they are less likely to do risky surgeries or get people into nursing homes ASAP in order to keep their numbers better.

[xtraxritical]

3. At least once you could say what CTCA is.

?

[The Straight Story]

4. From the link: Cancer Treatment Centers of America. (nt)

[BainsBane]

5. I always had a feeling they were shady

from the ads. They set unrealistic expectations.

[OldDem2012]

6. My wife and I talked about this outfit the other night...something just doesn't smell right. nt.

[graham4anything]

7. We are in agreement here.

I see their commercials all the times watching 'antennatv' that shows old tv shows and has I guess an older targeted audience so it is filled with medical commercials including the ones for wheelchairs and oxygen tanks and the walk in bathtub, etc.

The CTCA reminds me (though not the same and not implying anything) of the fiasco that happened to George Harrison the last months of his life with other doctors.

Law of statistics comes into play.(If they say only 5% survive such and such, well that is 5 out of 100 will live longer, but 95 out of 100 won't.) Of course it's great to be one of the 5.

When the commercials say insurance or medicaid will pay for it, that to me is a warning sign.

[sigmasix]

8. the real sickness

The real sickness that is causing the bulk of these sorts of anecdotal reports is the notion that healthcare and saving lives can be best carried out in a for profit model. Sometimes capitalist market strengths do not create beneficial outcomes. The relief of pain and suffering should never be profit vs. cost conditional. This is an immoral arrangement that is being artificially propped-up by our health insurance dollars, taxes, and the illegal and immoral plundering of medicare, medicaid and social security- all in the name of assuring a life of luxury and mega-riches for the CEOs and other well-connected agents of the owners of healthcare industry conglomerates and hospitals.
Hopefully a day of reconing happens for the sick individuals that make billions in profit off of injured, sick and dying Americans. Love to see some gated communities lose thier exclusivity as the victims of the super criminally wealthy realize that gated communities feature the homes and families of so many that have been the recipients of billions through the use of profit margin death panels.
Love to see some justice for the poor and disabled in our healthcare system, but it'll never happen as long as we cling to proven false right wing market dogma that claims healthcare for profit is a sustainable, fair proposition. But the rightwing never wanted a sustainable, fair model; they seek nothing less than the wholesale destruction of America as we know her. Teabaggers are also working hard at dissolving our social cohesion- as they support reversals in patient rights and insurance industry regulation.
Teabaggers continue to support the perpatrators of these horrible, inhuman profit margin death panels.
Why do Teabaggers hate sick, disabled and dying poverty stricken Americans?
I've been asking this question since 2010; why do Teabaggers hate America?