Charles Ornstein, Author at Pacific Standard

Home Archives for Charles Ornstein

News in Brief

Private Accreditors Are Under No Obligation to Release Their Hospital Inspection Reports

Reversing course, federal health officials withdrew a proposal that would have required private accrediting organizations to publicly release reports of problems they found in health-care facilities.

Charles Ornstein

Prescription drugs are photographed on September 11th, 2000, in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

News in Brief

New Report Finds Medicare Is Plagued by ‘Extreme’ Use of Painkillers

Some Medicare beneficiaries are being prescribed opioids by 10 or more doctors, or are filling prescriptions for more than 1,000 pills a month.

Charles Ornstein

Social Justice

The Crisis of Patient Privacy in Nursing Homes

A report found 18 incidents in the last year in which employees at nursing homes and assisted living facilities posted unauthorized photos and videos of residents on social media platforms.

Charles Ornstein

Touring the Vietnam War Memorial Wall with Dang Thi Hong Nhut during an event bringing together victims of the use of Agent Orange, a defoliant widely used by the U.S military in the war in Vietnam.

News in Brief

Key Veterans Affairs Official Downplays the Risks of Agent Orange

At a meeting in March, a lead analyst in the VA's compensation service was critical of the media, scientists, and the VA's own administrative tribunal for taking positions that differ from his.

Charles Ornstein

News in Brief

The Trend of Blocking Constituents on Twitter Goes Beyond Trump

As elected officials increasingly turn to social media to communicate with constituents, some are blocking those who disagree with them.

Charles Ornstein

Dozens of health-care activists protest in front of a Harlem charter school before the expected visit of House Speaker Paul Ryan on May 9th, 2017, in New York City.

News in Brief

Tracking the Disingenuous Tactics Republicans Are Using to Defend the GOP Health Bill

Since the passage of the American Health Care Act, Republican members of Congress have tried to swing public opinion to their side.

Charles Ornstein

News in Brief

Private Hospital Inspections May Become Public at Last

The public could soon get a look at confidential reports about errors, mishaps, and mix-ups in the nation’s…

Charles Ornstein

Social Justice

The Nude Video of a 93-Year-Old on Snapchat

A nursing assistant has been fired for participating in what is only the most recent in a string of surreptitious recordings by employees of nursing homes and assisted-living centers.

Charles Ornstein

Social Justice

Your Medical Records Are in Danger

Lessons from a year reporting on loopholes and lax enforcement of the federal patient-privacy law known as HIPAA.

Charles Ornstein