Daily Rounds: A Young And Lonely Death; High-Deductible Mysteries; Catholic Contraception Win; Men Faking Orgasms

The Short Life and Lonely Death of Sabrina Seelig (The New York Times) — "During the all-nighter, Ms. Seelig took Ephedra, a stimulant diet drug that had been banned by the Food and Drug Administration three years earlier, and had a few beers. When she felt sick, she called Poison Control for help, and spoke very clearly, a recording of the call shows. She arrived by ambulance at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, long regarded as one of the most troubled hospitals in the city, at 11:05 a.m. on May 30, 2007, conscious and alert but complaining of vomiting and dizziness. She was given a sedative that put her into a deep sleep, and her wrists were tied to the bed. None of her friends or relatives knew that she was there, and medical records show no measurements of her vital signs for hours that afternoon, suggesting that she was left unattended by the medical staff. By that evening she was brain damaged and on life support, with little hope of recovering. She died six days later."

The Mysteries of a High-Deductible Health Plan (The Boston Globe) — "...I recently received emergency room bills for four identical visits: a family trip for rabies shots, after a midnight visit from a bat. For each of us, the hospital charges were the same. But the adjustments — the amount our insurance company shaved off each bill, for reasons unknown — were different. Really different. One bill said I was responsible for $188, another $1,676. When I called my insurance company for advice, a nice man in customer service looked over my account and said he would call me back. I haven’t heard from him since. I think he needed a mental break. At least my family knew what it was getting into. We chose our high-deductible plan after running some numbers, calculating how many office copays we might face for a toddler who’s susceptible to strep throat, and figuring we might well come out even, or ahead. We understood that, for some people, a high-deductible plan can be a good financial deal.But for many people, high-deductible plans aren’t chosen, but imposed by their employers — or chosen by default, because of price. The number of US employees with high-deductible plans has grown from 10 percent in 2006 to 31 percent today. And on state exchanges, set up under the now-officially-legal Affordable Care Act, high-deductible plans will offer the lowest montly rates."

Judge Backs Catholic Owners of Firm on Health-Care Rule (The Wall Street Journal) — "A federal judge on Friday granted a temporary injunction sought by Catholic owners of a Colorado heating-and-cooling company who had objected to new federal requirements that they provide contraception coverage in workers' health-insurance plans. The decision is a victory for opponents of the birth-control coverage provision, which is part of President Barack Obama's health overhaul. Starting Wednesday, most employers must cover contraception, including the morning-after pill and sterilization, without charging workers out-of-pocket fees. Some religiously affiliated employers, such as universities and hospitals, don't have to comply for another year."

Men Fake Orgasms How Often? (The Huffington Post) — "In the survey, which polled 49,000 men and 1,000 women, according to a rep for AskMen.com, 54 percent of female respondents reported faking an orgasm, and 26 percent said they fake it every time they have sex. But they weren't alone: Thirty-four percent of men said they'd faked it at least once. The results seem to confirm the findings of a 2010 Men's Health survey of 2,000 men and women, in which 17 percent of male respondents admitted to faking it."