Against the tide

December 2, 2012 -- San Francisco's Doctor H. J. Kim says you're better off if you don't get sick in the first place. But here's the economic undertow: treatment is more lucrative than prevention.

He's swimming against the tide... and the insurance companies. He has invested his savings in high-tech diagnostic imaging equipment (the Imatron) that detects coronary blood vessel occlusions before they are symptomatic. This is a proven technology that goes unused because the insurance companies won't reimburse. His gamble is that patients are wiser when it comes to looking out for their own health.

A disease is easier to treat and the outcomes are better when it's caught sooner. The number one killer is heart disease. With this technology, its precursors can be detected. Millions of dollars could be saved. Most importantly, lives and suffering could be spared.

Sometimes the right thing to do is to swim against the tide.

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