Posted on 03/17/2010 1:47:59 AM PDT by Suvroc10
A shocking, new survey in the New England Journal of Medicine says that 46% of US doctors will either quit or be forced out of their practice if Obamacare passes. While this number is shocking because it is fretfully high and means that nearly one out of every two doctors in the US will no longer practice if Obamacare passes, it is nonetheless a dependable figure reported by a leading physician search firm with offices in the Atlanta and Dallas area, the Medicus Firm. The areas of specialty hit hardest by Obamacare, according to the survey, are in the family medicine and internal medicine fields. The bad survey results just continue as it was also revealed that a whopping 72% of doctors feel that a public option (such as that the Democrats have been flirting with) would cause the supply of doctors to decline, and, maybe consequently, an equally alarming 63% of doctors would not even recommend medicine anymore as a career choice!
(Excerpt) Read more at associatedcontent.com ...
This assumes, of course, that they will be permitted to quit.
I know most of the doctors I see are over the age of 50 and thus could easily retire. I also know that some of my doctors have quit and gone into teaching as the hours and stress are a lot better. There are also positions in research, consulting, drug companies, lecutring, and other such fields, also the army is always looking for doctors.
“This assumes, of course, that they will be permitted to quit.”
How many people would be comfortable receiving their medical care from someone who is being coerced? For that matter, how many people would be comfortable receiving care from someone who was dispirited and despondent about their profession?
Just as we “freep” polls to send a message, there is an element of manipulating the data here because physicians know how terrible this bill is, for them and for medicine i general, and even those who won’t quit want to send a message. The actual number who quit would be much less, probably 15% to 24% of our physicians, but that’s still huge. Socialism is not going to be pretty if Obama and Pelosi impose it by force.
No problemo! Will just import 3rd world medical school graduates to take up the slack!
It’s what England did!
This health care bill is a great thing... for the Caribbean nations and Latin America.
Stable countries close to the United States will see a huge influx of highly trained doctors opening new clinics, and huge numbers of “vacationing” Americans and Canadians willing to pay extra airfare to get procedures that will no longer be available north of the border.
If I was a Mexican mafia type, I would stop running drugs and start building hospitals.
The Obama Administration needs to study the law of Unintended Consequences. Massive Doctor retirments plus a massive amount of new patients = Super Long lines (probaby weeks or months in queues). DOH!
Just “going Galt” is all.
I doubt many will actually quit, even if they are going to take a hit if it passes, they still make really good money and will continue to work.
I hate to say “I told you so.” But I did.
But only if the are permitted to do so ....
And he Lefties would have no problem with that.
Investor Business Daily reported the same thing a few months ago.........
Just go on beleiving that pipe dream if you choose. I know a lot of doctors and I have been getting the same numbers since this whole fiasco started. Whistling past the graveyard is just that.
Obamacare will be a socialist disaster, it will lead to massive rationing, and it will drive physicians into retirement or at least non-clinical work. I simply suspect that the actual percentage who quit is overstated. Don't worry, even 15% departing would cripple medical care in every liberal city, which would serve the socialists right.
Obama will figure out a system of "Exit Visas" to leave the United States, or force people to post big bail-like securities if they travel overseas and they are over a certain amount of income.
Obama is going to be extremely afraid of a drain from the United States of medical professionals, and others of relatively high income particulary with conservative or libertarian voting records and habits (book purchases, etc). Got to keep the tax slaves in the fort, you know??!
Good! The sooner that we dump most of the government positions and special interest waste through the default to come, the better. Here’s something related.
New study is not going to make the President very happy (Obamacare a job-killer)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2472714/posts
There are lots of alternative non-clinical career choices available in industry including, but not limited to:
Physician Consultants
Physician Writers
Physician Executives
Physician Entrepenuers
Physician Inventors
Physician Professors
I have done most of the above at one point or another during my career, and am still involved in a number of entrepeneurial projects that will keep me busy for many years, including the development of DNA coated gold nanoparticles that can be implanted into tumors to measure the radiation dose being delivered. Likewise my business partners and I are building cancer centers in the middle east and may build a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant there as well.
There are also possibilities of continuing clinical medicine with cash-only practices (until Obama finds a way to end this) and the possibility of migrating to states like Virginia which has voted to reject Obamacare.
There are also non-medical careers that one might consider. Anyone intelligent enough to graduate from medical school should be able to compete in the job market. All of us have undergraduate degrees in a variety of fields that would provide some alternative employment opportunities. Most of us have graduated at or near the top of our class. I know there are lots of physicians who are going to seminars and mapping out strategies to exit clinical medicine and start alternative careers. I also saw an article about a physician who was selling clothes on ebay, making more money than she made seeing patients.
And then there are those like me who are close enough to retirement, who may just say enough is enough and get out of clinical medicine and become a full time Spyder Ryder, heading off to Galt Gulch
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