A Health Policy Headshaker

I was just reading an article about a "bootcamp" for diabetics at Beth Isreal Medical Center in NYC that was able to reopen its doors after receiving a charitable donation of six million dollars. The center teaches diabetics skills like how to monitor their sugars and using diet and exercise to help avoid serious complications from the disease. The main problem in the center's funding is the fact that they will most likely lose money on every patient they treat:

"Unless you have this kind of support, you really can't do this," said Dr. Leonid Poretsky, the chief of endocrinology at Beth Israel who will head the new center.

He estimates that the hospital will probably lose about $15 a patient for every visit.

Since he expects at least 9,000 visits in the first year alone, the lost money quickly adds up.

One reason for the shortfall is that the center will focus on prevention, using a team of educational nurses and nutritionists. While insurers will almost always pay the $375 for dialysis, getting them to reimburse even $75 for a nutritionist can be a challenge. (New York Times)

This makes no sense, even financially.