Dan Shaer

The articles are generally straight forward and reiterating information we already know. EVERYTHING contributes to the high costs and huge bill of health care ($2.2 trillion). It's a matter of what aspects are the most costly, what can be reduced, and what is considered a waste. The CNNmoney.com article (the "critics" one) claims that up to $88 billion is wasted on ineffective use of technology. The Washington Post article claims that we get what we pay for, better health care through better technology. I do agree that the more breakthroughs and improvements we have in our technology, the better treatments and preventions will be, thus less health problems eventually. I also believe in the concept of "you get what you pay for". However, I do think that there is some wasteful expenditures on unnecessary "technology". I still think that money should be spent on technology (I am a strong supporter of advanced technology), but on more beneficial ones.
As President Obama said in his address to congress last Wednesday, "We've estimated that most of this plan can be paid for by finding savings within the existing health care system — a system that is currently full of waste and abuse. Right now, too much of the hard-earned savings and tax dollars we spend on health care doesn't make us healthier."
Why do MRI scanners cost significantly less in Japan than they do here in the U.S.? The Japanese pay $98 for an MRI scan. In the U.S. they pay around $1200 (these figures are from last week's blog articles). The government should regulate such costs.
As a future doctor I'm sure that I would like to keep my practice up on technology if that technology improves treatments as well as makes my work more efficient. For example, in dentistry there is new technology that takes a 3D digital impression of a patient's teeth and creates an accurate wax impression in the lab using a special wax printer. This replaces the old fashioned alginate impressions (the nasty-tasting slimy material) which are much more prone to errors, are time consuming, and are uncomfortable for the patient. The costs may be higher but the results are priceless. This is the kind of technology that I consider legitimate spending.