Chủ Nhật, 8 tháng 9, 2024
NPR News: Proposed Midwest carbon capture pipeline is stirring controversy
In recent years, there have been lots of proposals for new carbon dioxide pipelines tied to a technology called carbon capture and storage. It's an effort to blunt the impact of climate change. A proposed pipeline in the Midwest would be one of the country's largest designated for carbon capture.
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Thứ Bảy, 7 tháng 9, 2024
NPR News: With no crew aboard, spacecraft Starliner lands without a hitch
The spacecraft landed in New Mexico early Saturday morning leaving two astronauts behind on the International Space Station. The crew members will return to earth in February aboard a SpaceX craft.
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In the United States, why are inpatient labs/imaging/procedures more expensive than the same ones done outpatient?
I understand the nursing care and other inpatient specific things have their cost but the labs, imaging, and procedures take the same amount of effort as if done outpatient. For example, say you have a patient with an isolated tibia fracture from trauma waiting for rehab placement and the primary care provider has already ordered things. Why not draw his IgE allergy test, or do the low dose CT for lung cancer, or screening colonoscopy while inpatient assuming the hospital has the bandwidth. It seems like it would be more efficient for the patient if insurance would cover it especially if the outpatient work was going to be done at the same hospital anyways. I think this is one of the strengths of the Veterans Affairs hospitals where an admitted inpatient can still have outpatient things done.
Uninformed Sharp Medical Bill Charges
I had a routine physical wellness checkup recently, which was supposed to be fully covered by my insurance (BlueShield MA). However, I later received a bill from Sharp, stating that my visit was categorized as a "diagnostic" appointment instead of a wellness check, simply because I asked the doctor a few questions during the visit.
The doctor had asked if I had any other concerns at the end, and I mentioned my irregular menstrual cycles. Based on that, they reclassified the visit, but at no point did the doctor or nurse inform me that this would change the billing type.
I’ve contacted both Sharp and BlueShield, but neither is willing to make any adjustments. Sharp did offer a 20% discount, but I don’t think I should pay anything for something I wasn’t made aware of. What are my options at this point?
NPR News: Chronic illness shattered this teen's life. Her service dog helped get it back
The middle school winner of NPR's Student Podcast Challenge tells how her golden retriever, Lopez, changed her life.
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Thứ Sáu, 6 tháng 9, 2024
NPR News: This week in science: a newly-discovered species, 'talking' dogs and a beluga's death
NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Regina Barber and Rachel Carlson of Short Wave about a newly discovered species in California's Mono Lake, dogs understanding words, and the death of a beloved beluga whale.
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