Kim Bellard

Cincinnati

Contributor at The Health Care Blog (THCB)

Writer focusing on healthcare, innovation, technology, public policy. Former Tincture editor, contributor to Medium and The Health Care Blog.

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Articles

Saving U.S. Manufacturing: Think Biotech, Not Cars

1 week ago | kimbellard.medium.com | Kim Bellard

Amidst all the drama last week with tariffs, trade wars, and market upheavals, you may have missed that the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology (NSCEB) issued its report: Charting the Future of Biotechnology. Indeed, you may have missed when the Commission was created by Congress in 2022; I know I did. Biotechnology is a big deal and it is going to get much bigger.
The Health Care Blog

1 month ago | thehealthcareblog.com | Kim Bellard

By KIM BELLARDNews flash: America is not a very happy place these days. No, I’m not talking about the current political divide (which is probably more accurately described as a chasm), at least not directly. I’m referring to the latest results from the World Happiness Report, which found that the U.S. has slid to 24th place in the world, its lowest position ever. We were 11th in 2011, the first such report.
A New Way to Internet

1 month ago | kimbellard.medium.com | Kim Bellard

Taara in action. Credit: TaaraKim Bellard·Follow5 min read·--If you live in, say, Ukraine, you probably think about Starlink a lot. Since Russia invaded three years ago, it has been heavily dependent on Starlink for internet connectivity — especially its military. Rural areas around the world that had never developed cable connectivity similarly rely on Starlink. It has been a boon to millions of people. But its CEO/founder Elon Musk has proved, shall we say, unpredictable lately.
Next Up: Fiber Computers

1 month ago | thehealthcareblog.com | Kim Bellard

By KIM BELLARDI know: you’re pretty proud for being into “wearables” to help monitor your health and other functions. You’ve got some apps on your smartphone. You use a smartwatch. Maybe you’ve tried one of the many iterations of smart glasses, like Google Glass or Meta’s Ray Bans. You were disappointed when Humane’s AI pin bit the dust. Forget all that. With fiber computing, your clothes can be your wearable.
Health Care in Abundance

1 month ago | thehealthcareblog.com | Kim Bellard

By KIM BELLARDA recent report from Moody’s Analytics, by chief economist Mark Zandi, had an eye-opening fact: the top 10% of earners in the U.S. – those who make $250,000 or more – now account for just shy (49.7%) of half of consumer spending. If that strikes you as unusual, you’re right. It is a record since at least 1989. Thirty years ago the comparable percentage was 36%.
Health Care in Abundance

1 month ago | kimbellard.medium.com | Kim Bellard

This too often describes our healthcare system. Credit: Council of EuropeKim Bellard·Follow5 min read·--A recent report from Moody’s Analytics, by chief economist Mark Zandi, had an eye-opening fact: the top 10% of earners in the U.S. — those who make $250,000 or more — now account for just shy (49.7%) of half of consumer spending. If that strikes you as unusual, you’re right. It is a record since at least 1989. Thirty years ago the comparable percentage was 36%.
Goodbye, American Science

1 month ago | thehealthcareblog.com | Kim Bellard

By KIM BELLARDMany people don’t realize it, but a hundred years ago America was something of a scientific backwater. Oh, sure, we had the occasional Nobel laureate, but the center of science was in Europe, particularly Germany. Then in the early 1930’s the Nazis decided that “purity” – of political ideas, of blood – was more important than truth, making life uncomfortable at best and deadly at worst for their scientists.
Patients Are NPCs

2 months ago | thehealthcareblog.com | Kim Bellard

By KIM BELLARDI found a new way to think about patients in an opinion piece by Ezra Klein: they’re NPCs. For those of you unfamiliar with gaming, NPCs are those characters in video games that aren’t controlled by live players; they’re part of the game, serving as background for the actions the actual players take. Not a very flattering metaphor. Mr. Klein’s article is neither about healthcare nor gaming, but about politics: The Republican Party’s NPC Problem — and Ours.
DEI Is Now a Four Letter Word

2 months ago | thehealthcareblog.com | Kim Bellard

By KIM BELLARDI’d love to be writing about something fun. Something that makes us think about things in a new way, or something exciting that will take us into the future. There are lots of such things happening, but there’s too many Orwellian actions happening that I can’t be silent about. Diversity, we’re told, is actually a pretext for racism – against white people. Equity is foolhardy at best and pernicious at worst. Inclusion only matters if you are the “right” kind of person.
Expect the Unexpected

2 months ago | kimbellard.medium.com | Kim Bellard

Science often surprises. Credit: Microsoft DesignerKim Bellard·Follow5 min read·--Most people probably know about Alexander Fleming “discovering” penicillin by accident, thus inventing the field of antibiotics. Others may know that Viagra was originally developed to combat hypertension and angina pectoris. You may think of Botox for its cosmetic purposes, but it was originally intended to treat strabismus (cross eyes), and has a host of other medical purposes as well.