More Doctors Giving Up Private Practices

New York Times ^ | March 25, 2010 | Gardiner Harris

[goodnesswins]

I went looking for a doctor earlier this year....when they heard I would pay cash...they said...”Sorry, we cannot accept anymore cash patients.” (NO, I am not Medicare.) However, I’ve heard since that those docs who DO accept Medicare pmts, can only have a certain amount of CASH payments....so, this particular practice must have hit their limit.....gov’t regs...they are soooo great!

[goat granny]

also the towels on their heads and machetes on the wall..

[ken5050]

Exactly...BTW..great pic on your home page..

[PSYCHO-FREEP]

Soon to become Federal Employees under the Federal Department of Universal Medical Care.

Clinics will become district oriented and all residents will be appointed their clinic. Doctors will be assigned.

[bert]

The complexities of modern medicine pretty much make standing alone impractical and maybe impossible. The skilled group of associates surrounding the primary Physician can not be maintained by only one person.

A group of some sort is pretty much a must. In remote areas it may be necessary but in populated areas, there is no way one doctor can get everything done and be cost effective

[TimSkalaBim]

As doctors move from being employers to employees, their politics often take a leftward turn. This helps explain why the American Medical Association — long opposed to health care reforms — gave at least a tepid endorsement to Mr. Obama’s overhaul effort.

The New York Times misses the point, again. Less than 1 in 8 doctors are AMA members. AMA stopped representing doctors a long time ago. The AMA is a business, and derives most of its revenue from Medicare/Medicaid billing codes, which it has a monopoly on. Doctor membership dues account for a decreasing share of the AMA's revenues, and subsequently, representing its members' interests has become a secondary function of the AMA. It's primary function is to increase its own Medicare/Medicaid-derived business.

"It is my understanding that HCFA in1983 granted the AMA what has been characterized as a “statutory monopoly” by agreeing to exclusively use and promote the AMA’s copyrighted CPT code for the purposes of reimbursing Medicare and Medicaid bills from doctors for outpatient services. As a result of HCFA’s and the federal government’s endorsement of the AMA’s copyrighted outpatient code -- to the exclusion of all competitors -- private insurance companies and others were also forced to adopt the CPT as their billing standard as well. The CPT code has thus become a fixture in doctor offices around the country. This predictably led to a financial windfall for the AMA in the form of CPT-related book sales and royalties approaching $71 million a year according to a report by the Wall Street Journal." From 2001 letter by Trent Lott

[LaineyDee]

thanks ken... :)

[TigerClaws]

The black doctor that got Bakke’s spot in med school in the landmark quotas Supreme Court case later killed a patient and lost his license.

Wasn’t to affirmative an action for the murdered patient!