City Desk

Posts Tagged ‘Healthcare’

Our Morning Roundup: “NBC Moodswing” Edition

*Checked out NBC Washington's new "Moods"/Washington Is... section? I hadn't! (Sorry, vacay.) Definitely interactive. Also, leads to hilarious/tacky catchphrases at the top of the homepage (see above). My problem with this is the same problem I have with "viewers' choice awards" on reality TV shows. (Full disclosure: don't watch many reality TV shows.) The whole "America has spoken" thing smacks of a.) Regis Philbin and b.) hypergeneralization. Still, Washington has spoken...and NBC's new site, moodswings and all? Pretty baller! Or maybe not.

*WUSA-9 reports that four teenagers are being charged by Prince William County police for white supremacist-style vandalism:

Read More "Our Morning Roundup: “NBC Moodswing” Edition" »

What’s On Cable News All Night?

This guy isn't even the craziest asshole attending these health-care town halls.

How to Get a Better Deal in D.C. Healthcare

Paying out-of-pocket for medical procedures like an MRI sucks. Paying for them in, say, Chevy Chase, Md., sucks even more. According to a release put out today by the Angie's list of medicine, Healthcarebluebook.com, the disparity between what you'd be charged for an MRI of the cervical spine (no contrast) at a Rockville imaging center vs. a Chevy Chase center is more than $1,000 (it's $1,056 vs. $2,710 and a geographical difference of about 14 miles). Add this to the travesty that both places charge well over what the consumer-oriented site says is a fair price for the procedure: $628.

"There's no rhyme or reason to it," says Aimee Stern, who handles PR for the site and is based in D.C. "It struck us because people in Washington are talking about healthcare reform, but no one is talking about this enormous disparity."

Stern, however, is also not talking about certain topics that could be helpful to consumers. When I asked her which centers in Chevy Chase and Rockville her release referred to, she said, "I wouldn't feel comfortable" getting specific and that calling out over-chargers on Healthcarebluebook.com would take tracking them over time.

Read More "How to Get a Better Deal in D.C. Healthcare" »

1100 Block of Varnum Street NE, March 8

D.C. Dish Hall of Fame
advertisement
Crafty Bastards Blog
  • Crafty Bastards!
    Blog
Find yours

This Week

Current Issue
The Issue of Nov. 18 - 24, 2009

advertisement
advertisement