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Several conversations have veered to the myth that doctors will not leave medicine because they will have nowhere else to turn. One person in particular has even suggested they would not be qualified to work in corporate R&D or in medical related professions.
Basically, the doctor haters believe that doctors are unable to function outside of their specified practice. But this is all beside the point. Hawkeye has a good point. They will simply deny service to anyone with Medicare or an Obamacare derivative that requires too much overhead to be compensated.
I'm a physician. You're right, doctors won't stop practicing. What they will do is stop accepting Medicare and Medicaid and slowly move to a cash based practice. What's going to happen is physicians are going to earn more and patients are going to be paying for a lot of procedures and visits out of pocket thanks to Obamacare. And there are enough people that will pay cash if they want to see their physician. And for many people, they like the cash based practice better. They get to spend more time with their doctor. They get to see them without waiting for an appointment. They receive more services if they pay cash and a lot of people feel it's worth it. So, you are saying you will only deal with those that have the Cash to pay, who would that be pray tell, even the rich use some form of insurance?
And if you noticed, Obama did nothing to address the source behind all of these problems...the lawyers. The threat of litigation forces physicians to practice defensive medicine. Now when someone comes in with a cough and fever, they are admitted to the hospital with pneumonia rather than then being sent home with antibiotics. The primary physician will then order a Pulmonary/Critical Care consult. The Pulmonary/Critical Care doc will then place the patient on multiple antibiotics, order a chest x-ray (if one wasn't ordered), a d-dimer etc. The Pulmonary Critical Care doctor will then recommend a cardiology consult because he can't rule out Congestive Heart Failure as the cause of his cough so then a cardiologist comes on board. The cardiologist will then order an echocardiogram. This is how medicine is practiced today. Actually the problem is Not the lawyers, it is the judges that allow lawsuits that should never see the light of day have their day in court. Plus insurance companies that refuse to fight baseless claims by agreeing to out of court settlements, the cost of which they pass on to you and ultimately to me through you. Maybe the medical professionals should form a united front against fraud, something like a union hmmmm?
Now you might think "Wow those doctors are wasting health care resources" and you are right but this is what also happens. If the initial ER doc who saw that patient sent him home on antibiotics and if that patient sufferred from complications related to pneumonia (death for example), the family would hire a lawyer and the lawyer would then sue the hospital. The lawyer would have argued why the patient was sent home and not admitted for his condition and why a Critical Care/Pulmonary consult wasn't ordered. So guess what happens, doctors and hospitals practice according to how lawyers will look at the case even if certain services are unnecessary because one lawsuit can devastate a hospital and the doctors involved in the care of the patient. Even though there is something called a "standard of care", it doesn't matter to a lawyer because he or she will find some reason to sue and will file a suit. What ends up happening in most cases is the doctors and hospitals settle out of court because it's cheaper to settle out of court than win and go through a lengthy trial. Actually I have a lot of first hand experience with the health profession through my wife and have seen the good the bad and the ugly. As I said to the rest of our statement, we agree in part.
Instead of Obama addressing trial lawyers and tort reform with regard to placing caps on punitive damages and increasing the evidence required to file a suit, he did nothing.
I am against tort reform as it is usually presented, putting monitary numbers of particular parts of the body or on particular procedures just does not feel right, especially considering some of the numbers I have see presented. I would prefer they get the court system straightened out plus the MDA to be more willing to remove someones licence when there has been case after case brought against someone over damage they have done, like that will ever happen. Don't get me wrong I find that most doctors are doing a fine job but there are a minorty of doctors out there that should not be treating anyone and problem it is a close knit profession no one seems to want to say anything. If the medical profession wants to really address the issue and make your voice heard, there are ways.
Casper
Several conversations have veered to the myth that doctors will not leave medicine because they will have nowhere else to turn. One person in particular has even suggested they would not be qualified to work in corporate R&D or in medical related professions.
Basically, the doctor haters believe that doctors are unable to function outside of their specified practice. But this is all beside the point. Hawkeye has a good point. They will simply deny service to anyone with Medicare or an Obamacare derivative that requires too much overhead to be compensated.
That pretty much sums up the dialogue in this thread so far. Good synopsis!
Several conversations have veered to the myth that doctors will not leave medicine because they will have nowhere else to turn. One person in particular has even suggested they would not be qualified to work in corporate R&D or in medical related professions.
Basically, the doctor haters believe that doctors are unable to function outside of their specified practice. But this is all beside the point. Hawkeye has a good point. They will simply deny service to anyone with Medicare or an Obamacare derivative that requires too much overhead to be compensated.
I find it sad you and Hawkeye have such low opinions of Doctors.
So , you are saying you will only deal with thosethat have the Cash to pay, who that be pray tell, even the rich use some form of insurance?
The doctors will simply force the patient to submit the claims to their insurance companies for reimbursement and require the patient to pay upfront. That's how it used to work in this country 20-30 years ago. It's only a relatively recent thing that physician offices began billing the insurance companies directly as a service for their patients, but with longer and longer reimbursement wait times, you will see less physicians willing to do so. Not only that, but it will save the private practices beaucoup bucks in overhead to not have to process all of those insurance claims and wait and wait to get paid on them. Win-win situation for the docs.
I still think it's cute that the doctor haters believe MDs are technology morons or are incapable of pursuing any other meaningful career. I'm sure some of these people are code monkeys, bean counters, or HR reps who like to believe their role in life is more important than it really is.
"code monkeys" I love it! "I called the Chia Pet customer service number and all I got was a code monkey." "When I got in the unemployment line, it was full of code monkeys." "Those code monkeys are buying cake with their food stamps." "I saw a code monkey in a caddillac escalade cashing her welfare check." "Those code monkeys are stealing my nuts!"
That's easier said than done. Do you know how much it costs to become a doctor? Do you know how much additional schooling is required to become a doctor. Do you know how much we worked during residency? I spent 7 years after medical school doing residency and making peanuts as I worked 100 hours per week. When you incur that much debt, sacrafice that much of your time, family and personal life, at the very least we should be compensated for our time. Why is it that people like yourself are okay with a lawyer making millions but heaven forbid if a doctor makes 200K.
Why in the world would I not accept that a doctor makes a very good living. Everyone knows what it takes to become a physician.
What made me react is the notion of "rejecting patients" because they would not bring in a sufficient amount of money.
It remains that, at least for me, to be a doctor is not a profession like any other, there is something very special and unique to it.
The doctors will simply force the patient to submit the claims to their insurance companies for reimbursement and require the patient to pay upfront. That's how it used to work in this country 20-30 years ago. It's only a relatively recent thing that physician offices began billing the insurance companies directly as a service for their patients, but with longer and longer reimbursement wait times, you will see less physicians willing to do so. Not only that, but it will save the private practices beaucoup bucks in overhead to not have to process all of those insurance claims and wait and wait to get paid on them. Win-win situation for the docs.
No thanks I will pass, as will the vast majority of patients, good luck with that. 20 or 30 years ago? I have been around longer than that and know that is not true, I was able to use my insurance that entire time. There was a time that the doctor billed the patient and they made the claim but we never in any way had to pay the bill up front. No it will be a lose lose for those that chose to take such a path, but hey they are free to try. I also remember a time insurace companies paid their bills without so many conditions and so many slick ways of trying get out of paying them.
Casper
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