Posted on 05/19/2005 7:14:23 AM PDT by Jim Noble
We thought of that in the first (1975) malpractice crisis.
The lawyers made those waivers illegal back then.
It's still a good idea, but it's impossible that they will ever be allowed again.
It's not working...
Not that I don't believe you but how did the lawyers make the waivers illegal? What about a contract with my Dr. or can the contract also be made not legal?
Nope you are wrong. I know I deliver babies. Same payment (global fee) that covers the entire nine months of care plus 6 wk post -partum care. Doesn't matter if you come in and the baby if born in five minutes or if I'm up for 24 hours worring my head off and finally have to do a c-section. I get paid the same. The hopital however does get paid differently (except Medicaid really pays them very poorly which is one reason everyone else pays more).
The way they get you in court is to say you were injured by "negligence".
You have a civil right not to be injured by "negligence", and you can't waive your civil rights by contract.
Well, they're not going to get lower by saying it's OK for patients to not pay their bills.
Yes, you are right and the insurance has figured that factor into your payment. But how do you separate yourself from the hospital that you need to practice your medicine? How do you fill their beds or use their fancy equipment when they are in need of money? You are in a partnership and it is hard for me to believe that if you do not help support the hospital they will not be so helpful for you.
And I am not picking on Dr's. They can make as much as they want--they studied, spent many years doing it and spend many hours away from their family because of it. And people are glad you did. IT IS THE POLITICS THAT I DON'T LIKE!
Before Bush illegal alien problems were not even on the radar. He has w/o exception allowed the problem to increase and fester without restraint. We knew our enemy in Clinton - it was obvious he wanted illegals for the voting block - but to have Bush et.al. RINOs backstab the American public is disgusting and almost treasonous.
Actually there is another factor in this story. What about all the money that was collected for the workers (most likely insured) on 9/11 and what about all the money sent on the Tsumani and what about all of OUR money our government spends all over the world on humanity efforts? BECAUSE of this, it seems wrong that we cannot take care of our own.
I am in no partership with any hospital. I do not admit patients or perform procedues for the benefit of the hospital. If the hospital had all physicians like me(who make sure to admit only if necessary) they would probably go broke. Now, I MUST take unassigned call for said hospital without pay. I perform a FREE service for them. Now ,I realize there are many doctors who do have a very cozy relationship with hospitals espically in the cities and large for profit run entities. I however chose not to be part of that. I guess I am to stubborn and independent just the right type of personality to be a conservative with a libertarian bent.
Wasn't on the Radar? I agree he hasn't done enough, if anything about it,but to say he created this problem is...
sad to say the least.
He made me an offer $2500 better than any previous offer. I bought it.
Our family doctor is reasonable. I think office vistits are $40, but when my Father broke his hip a few months ago, we had the ambulance take him to the local hospital where the only specialist in the area operated on him. He did a fine job and his insurance along with Medicare paid it all. There was no bargaining tho.
See what I mean, the hospital expects something from the Dr's that practice in their facility.
If I understand your free service, do you believe the hospital should hire on-call Dr's? And why do you think this is a free service for the hospital rather than the community or the patient, who is certainly not getting the service free.
The problem is there are hundreds and hundreds of people not paying their bills.
The salary of the CEO working for free might pay for 3 of them. Then like many hospitals along the border, the hospital can no longer pay their bills, pay their employees and will go out of business.
Then nobody gets health care and nobody gets a pay check either.
It is working just fine for some. I had some dealings with a lady Doc whose hobby was collecting Rolls Royces. I think she had 18.
My only point to you is that every responsible person these days---individuals and small business owners alike---must grapple with the heavy burden of health care costs. My elderly neighbor spends more than half her limited income to pay for health insurance. I know two-income families with children who can barely afford the insurance premiums, but they pay them. They pay more because people like the Houghs (who are not destitute) remain willfully uninsured.
If you're arguing that we need to revamp the system as a whole, I am ready to listen---but solutions are hard to come by. Here's my take: given people's desire to lead a self-indulgent lifestyle AND avail themselves of the very best that medical technology and innovation has to offer, the future of the health care system looks grim. I think prevention is the best medicine we can offer at this point, but no one's interested.
Yes they REQUIRE us to do unassigned on call work in order to have the privilage of admitting our patients. As a matter of fact the only way I can do such work(and not get a headache) unpaid is by realizing(or is it rationalizing) I am doing it for the patients and the community. Have I ever been pressured by a hospital to admit patients
I say buy health insurance. It's a terrible burden until you get sick, then it's a blessing. One $5,000 bill for a few days in the hospital will teach you that.
Things have turned upside down. Today the insurance clerk dictates what they will pay, often prior to treatment, and the hospital's goal (based on what type of equipment they have on hand) certainly can't be one to lose any money. Getting many doctors (for more patients) so they can buy equipment seems to be their game.
I have sympathy for the doctor. He is constantly being scrutinized for his decisions and then sued if anything goes wrong. Don't get me wrong--some arrogant asses need to be sued if for nothing more than the reason they went into medicine to begin with. It is unfortunate that doctors cannot simply be people that are able to say well, maybe I should have done that but we agreed to do . . . But they don't dare or they would be in a courtroom most of the time with the patients that prey on them, and anyone else they can, for a free lunch.
My spin is that hospitals/communities falsely believe that if they do not have a cutting edge hospital that no one will want to live in the area and the hospital administration has nothing to brag about. I think they are wrong. Regional facilities are fine for the expensive complicated medical equipment needed for the extraordinary procedures. These extensive processes should be removed from the common/normal medical processes and be put into the extraordinary medical facility on a regional basis where these different so called highly specialized doctors still today make grand sums.
National health care is a given in my opinion and it will be disastous. I believe we will live to see it as it is not far down the road.
When this happens the litigation will diminish. There will be no malpractice as I expect doctors will be employed by the government and they are immune.
HIPPA made way for our medical records to be broadcast and for further scrutiny by the insurance companies of medical decisions and the doctors. I HATE HILLARY WHOM I HOLD MOST RESPONSIBLE FOR OPENING THE DOOR TO THE INSURANCE COMPANIES.
"Guess how much that doctors visit was? 110$!"
I went to my doctor here in Southern Oregon for one purpose...to have him rewrite my prescription for Diovan 160 to Diovan 320, with the aim of cutting the pill in two and saving myself $50 a month.
Well, he rewrote it, then I told him I had some excess ear wax. He verified that fact, then left, sent in his PA, and she spent five minutes cleaning the wax out.
I then went to pay the bill. I cannot get health insurance from any company because I have high blood pressure (which is controlled by the Diovan) so I have to pay all costs myself.
He charged me $110 for the 3-5 minutes it took to rewrite my prescription. He didn't examine me or listen to my heart, didn't do anything except look in my ears and say "Yup, you have excess ear wax" and send in his 19 year-old assistant to squirt warm water in my ears.
He then charged me $130 for that assistant to squirt water in my ears for a few minutes.
$240 dollars for TEN MINUTES WORK, five minutes of him looking in my ears and writing a few words on a new script, and five minutes of having his assistant squirt water in my ears.
I was shocked...I actually stopped cold at the desk, and asked how on Earth they could charge that much money for so little work. That works out to almost $1,500 an hour.
I can see spending that much on a surgeon, okay...but five minutes of writing a few words down, simply doubling the strength of my prescription, is worth that much money??
That's how much I make in two days work, after taxes. It boggles my mind that it goes for a few minutes of writing a doubled prescription and then having a girl squirt water in my ears.
Something is way wrong with our health care system.
Ed
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