Doctor Shortage

The Hill ^ | Nov. 17, 2009 | Dick Morris

[Dajjal]

Doctor Shortage
by Dick Morris

Joseph Stubbs, president of the American College of Physicians — the second-largest doctors’ group in the country — confirms that “the supply of doctors just won’t be there” for the 30 million new patients President Barack Obama wants to cover. Noting that the doctor shortage is “already a catastrophic crisis,” Stubbs noted that underserved areas in the U.S. currently need almost 17,000 new primary care physicians even before Obama’s proposals are enacted.

In the meantime, according to Bloomberg News, a 2009 survey by Merritt Hawkins & Associates, a recruiting and research firm in Irving, Texas, found that “the average waiting time to see a family-medicine doctor in Boston … is 63 days, the most among the 15 cities” surveyed. By comparison, in Miami, it was only seven days. The study noted that Boston’s longer wait was “driven in part by the healthcare reform initiative” passed in 2006 in Massachusetts, upon which the Obama program is modeled. Bloomberg reported that “as many as half of doctors in the state have closed their practices to new patients, forcing many of the newly insured to turn to emergency rooms for care.”

[Pharmboy]

And hospitalists are another specialty that women gravitate to since they do not have to carry their work home. Emergency physicians also, but to a lesser extent.

[depressed in 06]

The advent of ZerOcare will split American health care into two tiers where American trained doctors treat those who can afford it and foreign trained doctors don’t see the rest.

[rlmorel]

I work in medicine, and that isn't the way it is. The problem is, the supply (need for neurosurgery) is not going to change, unless of course, the government simply mandates allowing a physician's assistant to cut holes in the skull to release pressure as the "standard" for brain injury, the need for surgeons will go down.

But if the government is involved, there is no supply and demand. Liberal socialist nitwits are conceited and arrogant enough to think they can manage it, just like the dumb ass Soviets, and just like the idiot Chavez.

We can add our current government to that heap.

Neurosurgeons ARE well paid, and they should be. There aren't enough of them, but the good pay does drive some who think they can handle it into that specialty.

Having the government regulate how many of a given specialty there is, how much they get paid and where they will practice is NOT going to allow any kind of invisible hand to regulate it.

It is a disaster waiting to happen. A lot of physicians are paid well now, but the work is extremely stressful for many of them, but the pay is a reasonable compensation for engaging in that profession for them.

[dodger]

No worry.

Oba-Mao will let a hundred thousand ‘barefoot doctors’ blossom as he unleashes nurses and even med-techs to do heart surgery and suchlike!

Mmmmmmmm, Mmmmmmmm, Mmmmmmmm !!

[MaxMax]

Agree, but the abuse will be rampant and 52-million voters will be overwhelmed
with their right to entitlements granted by voting for obamao.

There will be nothing left for people with real health problems
or the working classes who won't have the time to wait two days in line
when their families need money for food.

I see a crisis on par with a need for martial law.

[rlmorel]

"...It’s purely a matter of supply and demand..."

I might have misunderstood you...I presume you mean in the absence of socialized medicine...:)

[rlmorel]

"...If push comes to shove, you can expect the same kind of waiver to be instituted nationwide under "public option..."

Yep.

[MaxMax]

No, people abuse anything that is free. Chicago rings a bell not to long ago.
The system will be overwhelmed.

[holyscroller]

"The system will be overwhelmed."

You mean when the remaining Mexicans and Central Americans who haven't already illegally "immigrated" all come north to get their free health care?

[MaxMax]

I'm just talking about current Americans who, once they learn
it's free, will abuse it. The illegals already abuse it.

[Apple Blossom]

That's the plan. If there's a need for martial law, we can't have an armed citizenry now can we? They might shoot those poor reservists trying to keep order. That will be a good reason to come after our guns with very little resistance. They can promise that our right to health care will be protected, when what they mean is that no one will be shooting at us while we stand in line.

[Paul R.]

Bingo! I have been screaming this too: The “health care” problem is primarily a supply and demand problem, exacerbated by the gov’t injecting itself and it’s money into the picture. To the extent that tort reform and some other measures could free up medical personnel a little, to do more real “care”, one can chip away at the edges a bit. But the bulk of the problem is NOT being addressed in Washington, largely for the reasons you say, at least when it comes to the libs.

To the person who mentioned RN’s (etc.) taking up the slack, I would remind them that there is a projected shortage of 1 MILLION nurses by 2020. I can’t remember where I read that (might have been a link from Walter Williams site, but for the life of me I can’t find it!)

[Paul R.]

Bingo! I have been screaming this too: The “health care” problem is primarily a supply and demand problem, exacerbated by the gov’t injecting itself and it’s money into the picture. To the extent that tort reform and some other measures could free up medical personnel a little, to do more real “care”, one can chip away at the edges a bit. But the bulk of the problem is NOT being addressed in Washington, largely for the reasons you say, at least when it comes to the libs.

To the person who mentioned RN’s (etc.) taking up the slack, I would remind them that there is a projected shortage of 1 MILLION nurses by 2020. I can’t remember where I read that (might have been a link from Walter Williams site, but for the life of me I can’t find it!)

[Paul R.]

Is my mouse double clicking tonight???

[MaxMax]

Sure, and imagine the chaos at the hospital ER's with everyone trying
to see a doctor. Fights, yelling, cussing, And threats to staff.
The so called poor will be the straw that breaks the system, obamao supporters.

That's how I see it happening.

[MaxMax]

more than one million new and replacement nurses will be needed by 2016.

[MaxMax]

And here,

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
released projections that the nation's nursing shortage would grow to more than one million nurses
by the year 2020.

[CaspersGh0sts]

“but people are being treated now under our current system and they aren’t finding a severe shortage.”

That depends on what kind of care you need. Try and find a child & adolescent psychiatrist to take care of your kid, and you’ll find out that it isn’t easy. I should know, as it’s a field I’m strongly considering and we have a child with ADD and some anxiety issues.

The nearest one to Eau Claire, Wisconsin? Try 2 hours away in the Twin Cities with a 5-month wait. There are a mere 15 psychiastrists in all of Wyoming. If you’ve got a kid there with psychiatric needs, I guess you pretty much have to hope you find someone in Spokane or Denver.

[tinamina]

One of my Montana Senators, John Tester actually did a town hall meeting on the phone last night and people could ask questions after his spiel about how wonderful this is going to be for Montana. If you were not called on, you could leave a message on his voice mail afterwards. He said that this bill was going to help Montana because everyone would be able to get care, especially in rural areas.

After the call, I left a message asking him where this care would come from, for instance to provide the extra docs would they have to import a bunch of Muslims?

[cherry]

"create women doctors" ....how the hell do you do that....

what BS......maybe talk to the two top notch neurosurgeons that are female where I work, or maybe the ob/gyns or the hospitalist that do 7 days on, rotating to nights....

but other than that, I'd like to add...why be a doctor?....4 yrs college,3 or more med school...those internships, etc...the hundreds of thousands of dollars to study the HARD subjects in math,micro,biology,calculus,anatomy,botany,chemistry, etc etc...

go get a 4 year education degree and have weekends and summers off and get paid top dollar and never have get fired....

plus you have that great big union to protect you "for the children" of course.