Rick Finkelstein

Healthcare in the U.S.
At a time when achieving consensus on anything is close to impossible, nearly everyone agrees that our current health care system is broken. In this course we will explore the impediments to reforming health care in the United States, which by a variety of measures wastes approximately 25% of the country’s 3.8 trillion dollars spent annually. The goal in this course is not to argue a certain perspective. Rather, through readings and discussion of original sources, we will explore the complexities of our health care system, evaluate its attributes and failings, compare it with other systems around the world, and wrestle with questions posed by our current trajectory. We will explore how powerful interests—Big Pharma, insurance companies, hospital lobbyists, and physician guilds-- array to maintain the status quo despite clear evidence of alternative paths that would serve the greater good.

Health Care in the U.S.
At a time when achieving consensus on anything is close to impossible, nearly everyone believes our current healthcare system is broken. In this course we will examine trends in health and in healthcare in the United States over the last 30 years. Through reading and discussion of original sources, as well as vignettes selected from the instructor’s career as an anesthesiologist, students in this seminar will explore the complexities of our current healthcare system, evaluate its attributes and failings, compare it with other systems around the world, and wrestle with questions posed by our current trajectory.
Richard Finkelstein had a 30+ year career as an anesthesiologist, taking care of patients in the operating room, ICU, ER, and obstetric ward. He also was on the Board of the local physician-owned insurance company that administered the Medicaid plan for their county./