Cavalcade of Risk, Issue 5

August 2nd, 2006 by Julie Ferguson

We are pleased and honored to serve as host for Cavalcade of Risk #5. We could opine at length on the nature of risk – and we often do – but with 20 post submissions ready and rearing to go, we will commence with this week’s roster without further ado. However, we’d be remiss if we didn’t first offer a special thanks to HG Stern at InsureBlog, not only for being the visionary who launched this risk carnival, but also for his gracious and generous assistance in helping us to compile this issue.
The importance of trust – citing a Wharton Business School experiment on the effects of a breakdown in trust, Joe Paduda of Managed Care Matters discusses deception, trust and the healthcare industry, suggesting that complex policy restrictions and limitations may indeed save a buck now, but are likely to further erode trust and backfire over the long term.
Debt collection – Michael Herrin, aka Debt Collection Lawyer, offers sound advice on important steps you should take to ensure collection before the matter even becomes a debt. He also gives us a behind-the-scenes view of collection in his post about a collection attorney’s tools of the trade.
Electronic medical records – Michael Cannon of Cato at Liberty suggests that if we want electronic medical records, we first need to fix the incentives, and opines that ” … when House Republicans plan to vote this week on legislation that would spend your tax dollars to encourage the creation of electronic medical records, it seems like a classic case of one fouled-up government intervention begetting another.”
Corporate security – Wenchypoo discusses the rise of low-tech spying and the shocking ease of breaching corporate security in her eponymous blog, Frugal Wisdom From Wenchypoo’s Warehouse.
Immigrant workers – Peter Rousmaniere at Working Immigrants discusses the immense challenge of verifying employer compliance with immigration laws in a two-part post. Part two.
Personal finance – Kristin McAllister at Making Cents discusses important planning considerations in her post to buy (a home), or not to buy, that is the dilemma.
Emergency care – in a post on emergency care, Bob Vineyard of InsureBlog raises the issue of whether there is a lack of incentives for taking personal responsibility.
Economic systems – Brandon Peele at GT discusses the concept of Namaste Economics, suggesting that it is an evolution of the current Quid Pro Quo Economics.
Appraisals – Joe Klein of Roth CPA uses the recent decision by a tax court in the matter involving The Kohler Company to demonstrate why the choice of the right appraiser can really make a difference when it’s time to pay the IRS.
Hospitals and medications – David Williams of Health Business Blog has a piece of advice: Going to the hospital? BYOMD. He discusses why leaving medication choices to the hospital can be dangerous to your health.
Health incentives – We already knew (or suspected) that lifetsyle choices can help us increase or reduce the risk of disease, or even death. Marcus Newbury of Fixin’ Healthcare reports that a recent Wall Street Journal report demonstrates a financial benefit, as well.
Another take on incentives – Justin at Health Flux offers another take on the WSJ poll about lifestyle choices. He thinks that punishing folks who make unhealthy choices may not be such a good idea after all.
Pandemic Prep – with all the news centered on the Middle east, it’s easy to forget about other risks. Bob Sargent of Specialty Insurance Blog reminds us that there’s a potential bird-flu epidemic looming, and offers some helpful links.
Investing – blogger “frugal” at My First Million at 33 shares some some must-do money saving tips for potential investors, written from an amateur’s perspective. He covers everything from risk tolerance to how often one should review a portfolio.
Credit card fraud – You know all those little stops you make to get gas or a gallon of milk? Jeffrey Srain of Personal Finance Advice shows us that when and how often we make those little convenience stops can trigger bells and whistles at the credit card fraud center.
The politics of gambling – Jason Ruspini of Risk Markets and Politics explains how gambling could be the basis for “predictive markets.”
More lessons we can learn from gambling – Alex Tabarrok of Marginal Revolution explains what roulette wheels and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests have in common.
Budgeting tips – Prince of Thrift at Becoming and Staying Debt Free offers a refreshing formula for a personal budget in his post Understanding the Great Misunderstanding
Risky fun – here at our own Workers Comp Insider, Jon Coppelman offers the definitive word on goofing off when it comes to horseplay and humor on the job in analyzing a recent workers comp decision from the Colorado Court of Appeals.
Calling all medical bloggers: we want you
Envision Solutions and The Medical Blog Network (TMBN) have launched the first comprehensive survey of the global healthcare blogging community, a systematic attempt to gather comprehensive opinion and demographic data. from the global community of healthcare bloggers. Learn more about and participate at Taking the Pulse of the Healthcare Blogosphere survey.

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