TNSTAAFL...
Posted on 11/29/2013 12:48:41 PM PST by SeekAndFind
One wonders what the New York Times has been doing the past few years while conservatives were very vociferously warning about the entirely predictable, pending phenomenon:
But now, as California’s Medicaid program is preparing for a major expansion under President Obama’s health care law, Dr. Mazer says he cannot accept additional patients under the government insurance program for a simple reason: It does not pay enough.
“It’s a bad situation that is likely to be made worse,” he said.
His view is shared by many doctors around the country. Medicaid for years has struggled with a shortage of doctors willing to accept its low reimbursement rates and red tape, forcing many patients to wait for care, particularly from specialists like Dr. Mazer.
Yet in just five weeks, millions of additional Americans will be covered by the program, many of them older people with an array of health problems. …
Community clinics, which typically provide primary but not specialty care, have expanded and hired more medical staff members to meet the anticipated wave of new patients. And managed-care companies are recruiting doctors, nurse practitioners and other professionals into their networks, sometimes offering higher pay if they improve care while keeping costs down. But it is far from clear that the demand can be met, experts say.
No kidding. Read on for the many discouraging ways in which increased Medicaid rolls are likely to result in reduced access, poor-quality healthcare, and added fuel to the fire of widespread doctor shortages — and yet the Obama administration is still adamantly pushing the remaining resistant states to expand Medicaid as a miracle drug for expanding healthcare access.
Medicaid enrollment has been going much more smoothly than ObamaCare’s general rollout; the CBO has projected that a full nine million American will sign up through various states’ Medicaid expansions next year alone; and even some states not expanding Medicaid are already seeing a jump in enrollments, probably due to the increased ObamaCare-related publicity. None of this, however, means that the system is suddenly equipped to handle the onslaught or that doctors will even want to take more Medicaid patients and deal with the program’s already notoriously poor reimbursement rates (as they do still have that choice… for now). ObamaCare might mean some form of insurance for all, but that insurance might not be the automatic favor for all that the Obama administration is determined to believe it is.
NYT believes that there are piles of medical goods and services just lying around and the only problem we have is redistributing it efficiently.
Still way too many doctors out there who don’t understand that they can no longer expect to live a politician’s lifestyle.
Oh, how I wish I were a trial lawyer specializing in medical malpractice. They are going to seriously overload the courts.
This what this was really about from the beginning. Medicaid expansion as a vector to single-payer after the screaming started about the rest of this fiasco.
TNSTAAFL...
If medical malpractice presents an impediment to ObamaCare, what do you think is going to happen to the whole subject of medical malpractice?
MomMD, are you living "a politicians life style"?
it's very possible medical malpractice premiums will skyrocket and doctors will not be able to afford to either pay the premium or do without it.
It's also very possible that the entire system of malpractice law will be thrown right into the trash can, at least for people who have their medical bill paid by ObamaCare bucks.
Then we'll really see John Edwards' "two Americas."
“If medical malpractice presents an impediment to ObamaCare, what do you think is going to happen to the whole subject of medical malpractice?”
There will be tort reform, what else?
Yeah, tort reform. Right.
Trial lawyers own the Dems. Insurance companies don’t: they just enter into convienience deals when the Dems dangle enough incentive carrots in front of them.
Any profession governed by licensure can be controlled.
Far more on Medicaid and far fewer doctors accepting Medicaid, what could possibly go wrong??
What is the expectation of those on Medicaid? Do they think they will now have access to Rodeo Drive doctors?
I expect the premiums will be subsidized for those who accept Medicaid, therefore bribing doctors to accept it
In a few short years, that will be all of us. Oh, and hope and pray your assigned doctor isn't a Muslim jihadi with a diploma from some 3rd world medical program and he speaks English you can understand. Then hope the bribe you have to give him is adequate...
Tort reform and the ability to buy insurance from other states were two of at LEAST a dozen things Republicans wanted and fought for since this monstrosity was introduced, not passed, introduced. And they were both shot down repeatedly from “Dead on arrival”, “non-starter” Reid and “you can’t be serious” Pelosi.
Republicans were completely shut out of the discussion.
In my opinion, this is all part of a brilliant plan. There already is a doctor shortage without medicare, and there have not been enough medicare doctors up to this point. Any senior can tell you the wait to see a specialist is terrible. Why would any doctor want to treat patients who pay less over someone willing to pay a premium. You cant blame them. Nobody enters a profession to give it away. Especially a doctor which requires a lot of time and money before you even start to see the fruits of your labor. Lets push medicare alittle further where choices will have to be made who deserves the treatment the most. Dare I say death panels?? That’s one way to get rid of the boomers who will be sucking up the social security funds.
This article also needs to point out that Buckwheat has illegally stolen $460 billion from Medicare, paid for by people who contributed via their paychecks, and the Mau-Mau spear-chucker intends to give that money to black slobs, and their fatherless offspring, who never worked a day in their lives.
This is racist reparations in full view for anyone who cares to look.
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