Cavalcade of Risk #56

At the Cato Institute’s Health Policy Studies department we’re not sure which is riskier – being the leading advocate for free market healthcare or this Cavalcade. Nonetheless, we’re glad to present CoR #56. Enjoy at your own risk.

Health Risks

• David Williams knows that air ambulance services are risky but wonders why. While the New York Times blames the hospitals for outsourcing to for-profit industry, Williams questions whether they could do better given their own poor safety record.
• Paul Levy sends the message he never hoped to send after his Harvard-affiliated teaching hospital is responsible for a wrong-site surgery.
• Bob Vineyard becomes a medical astrologist for one day. Tell him your birthday and he’ll tell you your chance of developing schizophrenia, heart disease or cancer.
• Jason Shafrin floats the idea of a new currency for premiums. He thinks you would trade your life for less risk.
• Jim Harper shows us how the risks we take reveal how much we value life.
• Jolyon Patten says there’s a chance that genetically modified (GM) foods are dangerous to your health.
• John Leppard shines a light on the other health insurance problem: physician liability insurance.
• Guest blogger Brian Poncelet at Million Dollar Journey gives a well-researched analysis of critical illness insurance.
• Raag Vamdatt dissects the anatomy of an accident and personal injury policy from Tata AIG General Insurance Company of
  India.
• Vera Lang asks us to look starboard and play it safe on the water.
• Jonathan Pleztke breaks down the Medicare puzzle piece-by-piece.
• Yours truly discusses the risks of letting religion guide health care reform.

Corporate Risks

• Nancy Germond provides managers with a list of strategies to mitigate the risk of “brain drain” at your company.
• Stephanie Balaouras points out that companies often overlook the risk of power outages, which cause more downtime that hurricanes, tornados or earthquakes.
• Leon Gettler cannot understand why companies are ignoring environmental risk.
• Joe Kristan gives a technical explanation of a new IRS ruling on how life insurance premiums and proceeds affect the ability of S corporations to make non-taxable distributions.

Personal Financial Risks

• The Silicon Valley Bogger is worried about the risks of money market funds. Is your $$ safe in one? Read and see.

Ethical Risks

• Jon Coppelman has a gnawing case study in political corruption: Zimbabwe, where the danger of running a legitimate risk management business is more real than the risks you manage.

The Risk of Progress

• SocProf argues that modern progress is making ours a “risk society.”

This might be bad news for the world. But it’s good news for the Cavalcade. There is nowhere to go but up as we progress toward CoR #57 at the Sentinel Effect in two weeks. Until then, happy risk-taking.