DT takes a moment to spike this through our Hollywood-created token ring firewall:

Oh Divine Ruler of the Land, the Skies, the Seas, and Some Castle None of Us Have Ever Seen, Except Perhaps Dr. J. in a Drunken Vision,

I read with amusement that the great commonwealth of Massachussetts, font of all that is socialist, has a new plan for saving money in their healthcare solution: they’re going to stop paying hospitals whose readmission rates are above the statewide average.

I’m not a mathematician, but I’m pretty sure that won’t work how they think it will. Granted, the article is on NPR, whose greatest mathematician speaks of a land where “the men are men, the women are women, and all the children are above average”.

Why are progressive theories so far from real, mathematical analysis? Even a half-dead catfish should be able to see where this will end, yet they didn’t even think of the outcome? Gah! Bah! Feh!

With Great Fear, and Love and Kisses,

D. T.

Postscript: Instead of “progs”, what do you say we start calling them “proglodytes”? Has a ring to it, no?

Well, you know the Czar tries not to make fun of names. It’s what they do.

Anyhow, the Progressive would argue with you about this math issue. Indeed, they will be happy to throw case study after case study, many with color charts and graphs, showing the sheer Science behind their methods.

And if you want to discuss it, please read all the related literature from this bibliography first, otherwise you are a denier and there is no point continuing with your foolishness.

Of course, it really does not take an expert to spot confirmation bias. If you only count the successes as successes, and the misses as aberrations, then you will easily reach the same conclusions. The problem is that this is a crisis you see, and there simply is no time for corroboration or control groups or secondary explanations.

Clear?

Edit: Minion #462.5 writes in to add:

Most dread Czar (may the angels pee verily upon thy enemies),

In my current deep cover assignment as a nurse, I have gained some insight into the plans of the Massachusetts Soviet, and wherein they fall short; to wit, fully half of the hospitals in Massachusetts have readmission rates above the average. If they stop paying those hospitals, they will have a most difficult time indeed finding any hospitals that will take their patients.
—
Very respectfully,
Minion #462.5, currently in deep cover in the wilds of Georgia, USA.

The Czar quite appreciates the blessing regarding the angels.

Update 2: This keeps getting better.

Your czar-ness:

In my current deep cover assignment as a nurse, I have gained some insight into the plans of the Massachusetts Soviet, and wherein they fall short; to wit, fully half of the hospitals in Massachusetts have readmission rates above the average. If they stop paying those hospitals, they will have a most difficult time indeed finding any hospitals that will take their patients.

As I’m sure you are aware, even if #462.5 is not, Average and median are not the same thing.

It is certainly true that half of the hospitals will have readmission rates above the state *median*. It is not at all certain that half will have rates above average.

Consider a state with 10 hospitals (probably all that will be left after such a scheme is implemented). Nine hospitals have a readmission rate of 2%, and one has a readmission rate of 80%. The average readmission rate by hospital is 9.8%. Thus only one hospital thus has a readmission rate above average.

Of course, I haven’t had my arithmetic and other cognitive skills reduced through post-graduate study.

JSR

Updated more:

Oh Czar, may your enemies wet themselves as they lay prostrate before you,

I hesitate to waste another moment of your time on so trivial an issue, but the obviously highly-educated JSR is correct that mean and average are not the same. I was basing my statement not on a crass misunderstanding of statistics and the terminology therein as he presupposes, but rather on a more concrete measure… state health statistics. Picking, at random, readmission rates for heart attacks in hospitals in the Massachusetts Soviet, one can easily see that more than half the hospitals in the state have readmission rates above both the average AND the mean. Just to amuse my lil undereducated minion head, I checked ‘Heart Failure’ readmission outcomes with similar results. Both of these also compare poorly to the national average in each category. So, respectfully, Oh Czar (may thy beer stein be ever overflowing), I submit that my point, although poorly worded, stands factually correct. At least half of Massachusetts hospitals would be in jeopardy of not getting paid under the proposed scheme.

Love and kisses to JSR, no hard feelings. 🙂

-Naughty Nurse Minion #462.5 (who has no postgrad education)

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.