And this is why centrist democrats must be forced to hand over the reins to the democratic party. They are bought.
10 Likes
It should be captioned: “GOTCHA!”
I know everyone’s time is valuable and I’m sure you didn’t mean it this way, but the words you wrote out sure sound heartless.
I think this statement really sums up why we need to ultimately remove the profit motive entirely out of patient care.
14 Likes
To reassure everyone. At 71, I have had the equivalent of Medicare for Life my entire adult life. It is called military health care (aka Tricare). I rarely saw the same doctor twice, underwent several uneventful surgeries, never waited more than a week for elective surgery, always was promptly treated for emergencies, and regular appointments usually scheduled within 2 weeks, and most meds were cheap or free. Dental was free (retired, we have to pay for insurance) cosmetic not covered. I think it is wonderful.
Thinkaboudit, what is the value added by Blue Cross etc.? Mother-may-I coverage at a premium, always-rising price so they can reap obscene profits. The Government has no profit motive.
15 Likes
Not heartless as all. As designed currently, medical practice is a business. If I cannot pay my rent, employees, electric bill, etc I go out of business. I have said on other threads, I would be happy to see Medicaid patients and make nothing. Unfortunately, they would have to double their reimbursement to get to zero. Your question is one I get often, “Your job is taking care of children, how could you possibly consider money in the equation?” To which I generally respond, do you have a job? Do you expect to be paid to do it? I like living indoors and providing for my family. I would dearly love to not have to worry about money. I envy my British colleagues for that factor. But it is not what we are dealing with here. For you to suggest that providing hours of highly specialized care to a sick child and being told that is worth $20, and I am at fault? No, I do not accept that. You would pay far more to repair your car, your lawnmower, your air conditioner. Am i wrong to say that caring for a child should be worth more than that?
4 Likes
Don’t get me wrong - I agree with you. I wasn’t calling you heartless…I was calling out a health care system that is built around a profit motive in the first place. Doctors should earn salarys just like everyone else. But tying a number - any number - to the value of a human life is intrinsically wrong.
8 Likes
This is wandering off topic, for which I apoogise. Medicare for all is a very worthy goal and I support it wholeheartedly, but we need to be realistic about the fact that there are plenty of folks out there looking to undermine the entire concept, and this is one of their strategies. “How can you suggest that when people who have it cannot see the doctor they choose?” And it is true, to some extent, due to the fee schedules which have been put in place (possibly, if you are minded this way) for exactly that purpose.
2 Likes
Would you say that if you could avoid paying for all the administrator support required by regulations and insurance billing, that the Medicaid reimbursement would be adequate?
2 Likes
Good question, and one i cannot authoritatively answer off the top of my head. I have 5 full time employees whose job is to assure compliance with HIPAA, OSHA, CLIA, etc, 4 to fight insurance companies to get the charges they already agreed to pay, paid, and 2 more to take carre of billing and to chase down payments from patients. I am in a practice of 3 docs, 2 nurse practitioners, 1 counsellor and a psychologist. In military terms, my “teeth to tail” ratio is pretty sucky. Large, hospital owned practices gain significant economies of scale, but lose a lot of autonomy and personal touches. In general, i guess the answer is it would be pretty close.
5 Likes
To spot the Dems who are fighting against M4A, watch for the phrase “accessible healthcare”.
Accessible does not imply affordable.
11 Likes
I think it’s a question doctors should start caring about… because eventually the high cost of American medical care will become an issue to the public. “ER” has been off the air too long. I would much rather all these frustrating paper-pushers disappear than America’s standard of care drop. The medical lobby needs to start fighting for an efficient system too…
1 Like
When the charge for an operation is $100,000 but the provider agrees the price will actually be $5,000 or $6,000, you know there is some bullsh*t going on.
8 Likes
The APCO-crafted blitz leaned on right-wing voices such as Fox News pundit John Stossel, conservative think tanks like the American Enterprise Institute, and centrist Democratic groups such as the Democratic Leadership Council, a now-defunct group associated with the Third Way.
Think-tanking seems to pay very very well. In 2016:
Revenue - $75,066,910.00
Assets - $309,728,804.00
https://umbraxenu.no-ip.biz/mediawiki/index.php/Category:American_Enterprise_Institute
Their board is mix of old right money and Republican fund-raisers. (Mel Sembler, barf!)
7 Likes
I suspect that if there was an attempt to get American physicians to accept Medicaid reimbursements for all patients, there would be a physician’s union and strikes within a few months. Not a bad idea, either.
“Medicare for all” might not be as affordable as you think. Ask your grandparents how much they are paying per month in supplemental and gap policies to pay for what Medicare does not cover.
It can if we want it; the power is ours.
3 Likes
The Koch Bros say otherwise.
10 Likes
I live in a civilised country in which we already have socialised medicine. My Nana does just fine; she’s been living with leukaemia for a decade, with her care entirely provided by the state.
14 Likes
The criminals convicted under RICO known as the tobacco industry fit that bill!
1 Like
1 Like
