Lifestyle

After all of the recent weeks' heavy lifting, Jeff Brown changes pace with a piece that's a bit more whimsical, with some medical, business, and finance related quips and adages that he's accumulated in recent months.

The secret to whether your account is better off depends on several factors: your age, your portfolio mix, and whether you continued to contribute to the account, of which the latter is probably the most important.

Earlier this week, an article in the U.S. News & World Report discussed how telehealth and e-mail communication are changing the physician–patient relationship.

GM is promoting a 60-day money-back guarantee on all its 2009 and 2010 model year Buicks, Chevys, and Cadillacs, but smart car buyers know to look for catches in the fine print and there are a few in GM’s deal.

The challenge for an investor in this toppy market is how best to get a return out of newly placed money no matter where the market lands. Money markets and short term CDs return little and investing in stocks or exchange traded funds could have its own set of problems. So what's an investor to do?

The catalyst for yesterday's broad-based rally was the better-than-expected Q3 GDP report. The report itself looked good at first glance, but if you take away some of the cosmetics--namely government stimulus---the seemingly beautiful GDP report looked a little less appealing.

Make up for proposed Medicare cuts in reimbursements by utilizing the ideal corporate structure and maximizing tax-deductible benefits for the doctors in practice.

Homeowners who have Chinese drywall in their homes are facing a new problem – insurers are cancelling the homeowners policies of those who have filed damage claims over the possibility of future damage claims.

Although Bank of America refers to its new credit card fees as a “test,” many industry observers believe the move to be the beginning of a trend, as banks act to recover lost revenue.

Because time is all we have (besides our good names), we often find ourselves bending to wants of insurance and pharmaceutical companies, our economic and emotional needs, and even our patients' (sometimes unreasonable) demands. This diminishes us each time we do it as the ends certainly do not justify the means.

If you compare the performance of high-cost, actively-managed funds to that of a low-cost index bond fund, chances are you’ll find that the extra money you’re paying isn’t buying you a track record that would justify the added cost.

This week a battle seems to be starting out between bulls and bears and if smart money begins to run for the exits, it will be quite apparent in the market. Stay tuned!

There are a growing number of inheritance thieves who can sidetrack your estate in a variety of ways. Here are some of the most common thefts, along with advice from estate planners on how to avoid them.

In the tax free shop at the Heathrow airport, I bought some cosmetics duty free at an exchange rate of $1.65 per pound. I didn't feel so great later on when I found out that the exchange rate for the day was $1.58 per pound. My airport experience is similar to many investors that don’t pay attention to cost and therefore get bit in the butt when they invest. The reason is this they aren’t aware of their loss.

Savings Bonds used to be a plain vanilla investment that combined low risk with a decent return, however, many Savings Bonds are now prime candidates to be replaced by better investments.

The majority of Americans are oblivious to a crisis that has already begun.They are distracted by their latest text message and engrossed by the adventures of balloon boy. What will blindside them is the crisis' depth and ferocity.

To help you make the best possible decisions with your financial advisor, it is important to understand how he or she is compensated so you can become comfortable with any conflicts of interest that may exist.

From third quarter earnings reports, it appears as if we're seeing a tired market. However comparisons should look better in the fourth quarter, indicating that this pause in action is apt to be one that refreshes, as opposed to one that reverberates, as a strong sell signal.

Unless you know your way around the stock market and enjoy taking on heavy risk, say financial gurus, certain investments probably aren’t for you.

This session focused on the challenges that mandate change in the healthcare system, looked at high-priority improvement opportunities, discussed the use of continuous quality improvement methods to manage change, and emphasized the importance "thinking in systems."

There’s a long list of home improvements that are eligible for tax credits in 2010, including upgrades to your insulation, windows, doors, air conditioning, and appliances.

When young and old members of a practice group disagree on implementation of a benefits plan, everybody loses. Here's how to work around traditional office politics.

If you’ve never considered clinical research appropriate for your portfolio of service offerings, or have, but decided it’s too daunting of a task, Alvin Wells lays out the steps necessary to integrate this personally and financially rewarding aspect of medicine into your practice.

The prevalence of specialty pharmacy networks is increasing and in the coming years will threaten the existence of the “buy-and-bill” model that currently guides many physician drug-purchasing habits. Will you be ready?

Stock indices hit new lows this morning, vacillating near short term supports. Meanwhile, consumer sentiment could be a potential headwind for the market.

Recruiting a new doc and bringing him/her up to full speed costs tens of thousands of dollars and much more in potential production loss. This reality underscores the importance of employee retention to the health of your practice.

The idea behind an IRA is fairly simple, but owners should be wary of the complex web of parameters that regulate inherited IRAs.

Good news: average airline fare prices are down from last year by as much as 20%. Bad news: some airlines are trying to boost tepid revenues by imposing a “peak travel” surcharge of $10 per trip if you fly on certain days.

Strong earnings from a couple of industry bellwethers and a weaker US dollar brought about a concerted buying after that sent all three major indices to new 2009 highs.

Whether you’re looking to relocate for retirement or a better life style, strong planning opens up a whole vista of choices. Figuring out where you want to spend your next years means intelligent sifting through those choices.