Your letters

For the record

Regarding Another Misuse of Your Credit Record (From Our President, September 2009), it is time for the mystery behind credit-reporting scores to be revealed and the data made accessible to consumers in real time. Why can't I run my own financial decision-making scenarios to determine their impact on my credit score before proceeding? Let's level the playing field and, heck, play the same game.

R. Walsh
San Diego

Good medicine

Patients, Beware (September 2009) offered sound advice on how to avoid complications in the hospital but underplayed a major strategy against duplicate testing, poor communication, and uncoordinated care: a good doctor outside the hospital. A primary-care doctor who knows you and your approach to care and is familiar with the technology, procedures, and personalities that can make the hospital a dangerous place is your best advocate.

William R. Phillips, MD, MPH
Seattle

Wash Up, Doc (September 2009) raises a question: Why don't hospitals and other health-care facilities post signs stating, "Please remind our doctors and other health-care professionals to wash their hands before examining or treating you"? That might prompt more patients to speak up and make it harder for doctors to get irritated about the reminder, or ignore it. Maybe the new health-care-reform bill should mandate such signs as a cheap and easy way to prevent hospital infections from spreading, reducing costs.

Eric Lindblom
Takoma Park, MD

Reverse mortgages

Congratulations on Reversals of Fortune (September 2009). This is one of the best pieces of investigative journalism I've seen in your magazine. It should be required reading for Congress and those who are debating reforms to our financial system, for it's clear that the heart of the problem is the decoupling of risk and reward in the sale of financial instruments.

Steve Felgar
Las Vegas

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