The Homeless Persons Health Project has been compiling annual statistics on homeless deaths in the greater Santa Cruz area. Here is their executive summary of those statistics which was published on Dec. 21, 2004. The reason that the list of homeless deaths had 37 names but the report says 30 deaths is due to the fact that some homeless people were able to get into housing just prior to their deaths and were not included in the statistical study, though no doubt homelessness played a factor in their deaths. --- Becky Johnson of HUFF

George W. Bush apparently is wearing a medical device for "persons at risk of cardiac arrest." It is a LifeVest wearable defibrillator. He started using it sometime after his January 2002 fainting spell, which was attributed to choking. Based on photos showing him wearing the device, one can conclude the fainting was due to atrial fibrillation (AF), which his father also had.

The class divide in health care is not much less visible in America today than it was in pre-war Britain. The public sector in general and all forms of social welfare policy are under the privatization gun.

Sure it hurts like hell, causes permanent brain damage, but the loss of brain cells will ease your depression. Patients certainly are likely to claim they are cured to avoid more treatment. -Steven Argue

This dialogue between the infamous (yet hardly known) Dr. Szasz and his critics allows him to once again articulate the argument he has presented so brilliantly and passionately for over four decades. . . . A profession that fails to learn from and respect those who confront it with controversial and discomforting ideas loses strength and vibrancy. Hopefully, at least some younger psychiatrists will be encouraged to read this book. They will find that their intellectual and professional lives will be enriched.