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Category Archives: Medicine

Uber for Nursing: How an AI-Powered Gig Model Is Threatening Health Care

Roosevelt Institute: “The gig economy’s labor model and its algorithmic management technologies now have a foothold in one of the largest labor sectors in the country: health care. On-demand nursing companies such as CareRev, Clipboard Health, ShiftKey, and ShiftMed have promised hospitals more control and nurses more flexibility. Through original interviews with 29 “gig” nurses and nursing assistants, this brief finds that these apps encourage nurses to work for less pay, fail to provide certainty about scheduling and the amount or nature of work, take little to no accountability for worker safety, and can threaten patient well-being by placing nurses in unfamiliar clinical environments with no onboarding or facility training. On-demand nursing platforms are also using the Uber playbook to lobby state legislatures in an attempt to exempt themselves from existing labor regulations. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses have fled the profession as a result of poor working conditions, creating what some have incorrectly identified as a “nursing shortage.” As gig nursing platforms falsely promise to empower workers and meet their needs, it is up to legislators, policymakers, civic leaders, and community organizations to act to solve the real problems at the root of this crisis.”

If You’re Pregnant, Here’s What You Should Know About the Medical Procedures That Could Save Your Life

ProPublica: “We heard the same story again and again this year: The women were having miscarriages. They were bleeding and in pain. They needed a medical procedure to clear their uterus, but their doctors delayed it or didn’t even counsel them about it. Our yearlong investigation found that abortion laws are affecting how physicians treat… Continue Reading

PetSavers Ageing Canine Toolkit

“This PetSavers funded resource, developed from research carried out at the University of Liverpool, has been designed to inform pet owners on the common conditions associated with canine ageing, and encourage regular health screening, veterinary communication and age-appropriate care. Click here to see our collection of resources supporting the toolkit.” BSAVA PetSavers Ageing Canines Booklet… Continue Reading

How AARP Shills for UnitedHealthcare

American Propspect Robert Kuttner: ” Why does the supposed advocate for the elderly steer them to the industry’s worst insurer? We still don’t know quite why the assassin of Brian Thompson targeted the CEO of UnitedHealthcare. But it’s hardly a secret that UnitedHealthcare has the worst record among all large insurers in denying necessary medical… Continue Reading

Guide to Abortion Privacy – Digital Defense Fund

Keep Your Abortion Private & Secure –  This page is organized into different security-related threats. You can jump to the ones that most concern you. Along with each scenario is a list of digital security tips to neutralize the threats. These are possible concerns you might have: Seeing advertisements related to pregnancy/abortion Tech companies like… Continue Reading

Location data firm helps police find out when suspects visited their doctor

Ars Technica: “A location-tracking company that sells its services to police departments is apparently using addresses and coordinates of doctors’ and lawyers’ offices and other types of locations to help cops compile lists of places visited by suspects, according to a 404 Media report published today. Fog Data Science, which says it “harness[es] the power… Continue Reading

Find out why your health insurer denied your claim

ProPublica’s Claim File Helper lets you customize a letter requesting the notes and documents your insurer used when deciding to deny you coverage. Get your claim file before submitting an appeal. What’s a Claim File? Why Should I Request One? A claim file is a collection of the information your insurer used to decide whether… Continue Reading

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, December 7, 2024

Via LLRX – Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, December 7, 2024 – Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the… Continue Reading

FTC Bans Location Data Company That Powers the Surveillance Ecosystem

“The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed order bans use or sale of data associated with military installations, churches, healthcare facilities, or other sensitive locations. The Federal Trade Commission will prohibit data broker Mobilewalla, Inc. from selling sensitive location data, including data that reveals the identity of an individual’s private home, to settle allegations the data… Continue Reading

FTC – Examining the Data Practices of Social Media and Video Streaming Services

Examining the Data Practices of Social Media and Video Streaming Services, September 2024. In December 2020, the Federal Trade Commission issued 6(b) Orders to nine of the largest social media and video streaming services—Amazon, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Snap, ByteDance, Discord, Reddit, and WhatsApp (“Companies”). At the time, a bipartisan group of Commissioners issued a joint… Continue Reading