Club Med: Are Dems Using Medicare Payments To Silence Doctors?

IBD's Capital Hill ^ | 3/11/2010 | Ed Carson

[Slyscribe]

It’s an annual Capitol Hill tradition: Automatic Medicare physician rate cuts loom, lawmakers suspend them for another year. But with a 21% cut set for March 1, Democrats only delayed it for a month. And Senate Dems only plan to extend that through August. What’s going on? Some Republicans and doctors say Democrats are using the “doc fix” to keep the AMA supporting the health overhaul.

From IBD’s Thursday issue:

“Doctors have been held hostage to get them to play ball on the broader health care reform package,” said Sage Eastman, spokesman

[bgill]

Surely doctors can see rates will be cut even more with ObamaCare.

[Josa]

Doctors DO see that rate cuts will be a big part of obamacare. My brother-in-law is a physician and I
can assure you that most physicians are strongly
opposed to this socialized medicine.

[NautiNurse]

First problem with this article is equating physicians with the AMA. Less than 20% of practicing physicians are AMA members.

Physicians have been strung along for years waiting and wondering whether Congress will override the annual massive cuts. This year is simply worse than usual. Extortion doesn't sit well with U.S. citizens, and physicians are no different.

Congress should receive commensurate compensation cuts.

[CPT Clay]

Sure they are, its the Chicago way.

[CPT Clay]

The Admin will “show” them. Vindictive Bastards.

[FrankR]

"I can assure you that most physicians are strongly opposed to this socialized medicine. "

I certainly hope so; doctors in socialized medicine countries are put on a government salary, and that's all they get, or can ever hope to get.

The proof is in the vast number of foreign physicians we have in America...why would they come here? Well, to learn the best medical techniques in the world, the freedom, and the money they can earn here as a physician.

If one stops for a moment and looks around, you'll see that there is proof everywhere against socialized medicine, and I hope our representatives vote "NO" against ANY FORM OF OBAMACARE, as it will simply be a "framework" for socialized medicine.

Wanna wait 6 months for a doctor's appointment, and then get a bottle of aspirin? That's socialized medicine.

[festoon]

I've been a surgeon for 27 yrs. and have NEVER joined the AMA. They are a political group akin to a union that votes in it's best interest, not necessarily the interest of the group.

[olepap]

The plan is drive the heretic doctors out of practice and replace ‘em with doctors from India, Africa, and South America. Paging Dr. Mbogo! Paging Dr. Ramiswamithan! Put the doctors on salary with a nice government pension. Micro manage ‘em.

[Dead Eye Lane]

Well it does help explain doctors remarkable silence on this issue.