Inappropriate Care Costs U.S. $6.76 Billion Annually

A new study almost $7 billion of wasteful spending in American health care:

A new study almost $7 billion of wasteful spending in American health care:

• $5.8 billion: Prescribing a brand-name cholesterol-lowering drug without trying a less expensive generic first.
• $527.4 million: Bone density scans for women ages 40 to 64 years.
• $175.4 million: Ordering CT Scans or MRI’s for lower back pain.
• $116.3 million: Prescribing antibiotics to children with sore throats caused by a virus.
• $47 million: Pap tests for patients younger than 21 years of age.

Read the whole report at the Archives of Internal Medicine.