Oxymorons: The Myth of a U.S. Health Care System (Hardcover)

~ J. D. Kleinke (Author) "In 1943, at the height of World War II, a forty-eight-year-old shipyard laborer had a major heart attack, spent a week in the hospital, and..." (more)
Key Phrases: standard benefits plan, tax parity, disenrollment rates, United States, Wall Street, Community General (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In his first book "Bleeding Edge," and his editorials in The Wall Street Journal and elsewhere were his argument on behalf of managed care, then "Oxymorons" is his mea culpa." (The Wall Street Journal, 12/11/01)

"The book is interesting, easy to read, and flows smoothly." (Journal for Healthcare Quality, October 2002)

Review

"J.D. Kleinke takes us on a fearless, often harrowing journey to the beating heart of the U.S. health care system, dispelling much of the conventional wisdom about what is wrong with that system, and focusing our attention on what will and will not work to fix it. Oxymorons is a comprehensive, uncompromising, and durable milestone in the annals of health policy, medical, and business literature." — John Iglehart, national correspondent, New England Journal of Medicine and founding editor, Health Affairs

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (September 27, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787959707
• ISBN-13: 978-0787959708
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #562,218 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Long on problems; Short on answers, September 23, 2002

By	M. Engel "engel265" (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

J.D. Kleinke uses 90% of the book to describe the woes of the US healthcare system. The tone is very very negative and the author uses words such as "moronic" way too much. It is tiring to read so much unbalanced negativism. The critique may be warranted but is not properly structured; there is a lot of focus jumping from anecdotes about payers, providers, government, consumers, consultants, etc. Kleinke even tries to explain the problems using Complexity Theory about which he clearly knows nothing. (Attempting to draw analogies between our healthcare system and sets of stiff differential equations). In the last 10% of the book Kleinke presents a solution that he does not tell how could ever be implemented. It is a combination of old utopic ideas. In short, buy this book only if you need more reasons why our healthcare system is broke.

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oxymorons: The Myth of a U. S. Health Care System, February 1, 2002

By	Dean Coddington (Denver, Colorado) - See all my reviews

Oxymorons is an outstanding book. It is very well written, interesting, comprehensive and insightful.

Kleinke makes a compelling case of what is wrong with our employer-based health care system (which he calls dysfunctional). He argues that the best answer for the U. S. is to get employers out of the picture and come up with a counsumer-choice plan (through tax credits or other means, consumers purchase their own health plans).

I especially liked Chapter 9 where Kleinke reviews where he is coming from. For a period of his life, he and his wife could not afford health insurance and were among the ranks of the uninsured. He tells what it is like to scrounge for antibiotics to fight a serious sinus infection, and other experiences in trying to receive health care without the ability to pay. Naturally, he is strongly in favor of some form of coverage for the 44 million people in the U. S. who are uninsured.

In the last sentence of the book, Kleinke says that only three elements in health care really matter -- patients, caregivers and medical technologies, including new drugs. I would add money, or finance. It seems to me that the payment system is the primary driver of the fragmentation we are experiencing, and that most proposals for change in health care relate to financing.

In conclusion, Kleinke has written a valuable book, and one that should generate plenty of discussion among those interested in the future of health care in the U. S.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Author Full of Himself; Weak Analysis and Bombast, June 28, 2008

By	ReadClosely "ReadClosely" (NY, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

Disappointing book from someone whose beliefs about and analyses of the U.S. health care system are all over the map. While admittedly a decent writer, Kleinke can't deliver. The book is full of weak analysis, arguments that despite their cleverness don't hold together, and bombastic statements. Author is so full of himself and so all over the place that he seems unstable. Don't waste your money or your time on this book.