When I’m retained to help a PCP improve their Medicare Advantage performance under a shared-risk contract, what’s my first piece of advice?     Relax.     If they’re working under a shared-risk contract, Medicare Advantage will reward them for doing what they do best—taking great care of their patients.     Sure, they’ll be bombarded with metrics they have to meet and risk-codes they have to submit.     I tell them to forget...

Samantha was freaking out. Not only was she wearing a scratchy paper hospital gown, but she was anxiously awaiting the results of her mammogram, done earlier in the week. A double whammy. Her heart beat faster. She was sweating despite the flimsy hospital covering. Her mother had breast cancer, so she had a good chance of getting it too. A triple whammy. What would happen if she had a tumor? Would she have to have...

Take it seriously. Telemedicine is serious business. A doctor whom you don’t know and who doesn’t know you is going to evaluate your medical problem and possibly prescribe a medication for treatment. She doesn’t know your history, your values, or your preferences except for what you tell her. And you’re doing it over the phone or on video. Your doctor can’t smell you or check out your body language. They can’t see many of the...