Posted on 04/04/2013 10:54:15 AM PDT by illiac
Cancer clinics across the country have begun turning away thousands of Medicare patients, blaming the sequester budget cuts.
Oncologists say the reduced funding, which took effect for Medicare on April 1, makes it impossible to administer expensive chemotherapy drugs while staying afloat financially.
Patients at these clinics would need to seek treatment elsewhere, such as at hospitals that might not have the capacity to accommodate them.
“If we treated the patients receiving the most expensive drugs, we’d be out of business in six months to a year,” said Jeff Vacirca, chief executive of North Shore Hematology Oncology Associates in New York. “The drugs we’re going to lose money on we’re not going to administer right now.”
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
And that is why the big hospitals wanted Obamcare passed. They see it as a way to cover a large % of the currently uninsured so what they used to write-off will be paid for by Obamacare.
Also what many uninusred, who aren’t trying to bilk the system, may not know is there are organizations out there that will negotiate medical bills, fees et al on their behalI had a family member who was unemployed and uninsured and had to visit the ER. When he recieved his bill he called the hospital and they cut the ER bill from 1,300 to 600.
The ER physician used a third party billing organization, that was not cooperative at first. So he found an organization called Medical Cost Advocate. MCA negotiated the physician bill on his behalf and had it reduced by 60%. Their fee is 35% of the amount saved. Example the ER physician bill was 780.00 they negotiated it down to $312.00, plus their charge of 163.8 for a bill totaling 475.8 versus the original physician charge of 750.00.
Maybe pricey but now that he has an idea of the physician’s true cost/charge, the next time he visits the ER and if he is uninsured he has a starting point to where he can negotiate the bill.
Almost all uninusred can negotiate their medical bill if they are willing to take the time and make the effort. The first bill for their medical episode is not written in stone.
And myriad groups around the country and the world, donate to this organization. What a sham.
You can’t manage on 2% less monies?
Gimme a break...
Holeee Cow!
I got a paper cut on my tongue this morning for the same reason!
Sequester, Schmester....
“blaming the sequester budget cuts.”
Those evil Repubs and their $44B cut to the entire federal budget is causing the deaths of millions, while the benolavent Dems and their $715B cut to medicare built a heaven for those that the evil republicans murder!
I pay for my medical care out of my pocket.
I had problems with my bladder a few years back.
I went to one of those Doctor in a Box places, as my regular doctor had recently passed away and I hadn’t gotten around to finding a new one. Total Bill for diagnosis and Cipro? $200 bucks. Paid it.
The way it was explained to me didn’t feel right, so on the advice of a friend I went to the emergency room. Got a diagnosis and then referred to an internist. I wasn’t there 10 minutes, didn’t take any tests like I did at the previoud doctor and was handed a bill for $2,000 bucks.
Didn’t like the diagnosis from them either.
Found one of the best internist in our area. Called em up and asked for an appointment. They wanted to know who referred me. Gave them friends name and mentioned they were a patient.
She laughed and said “No. I mean what doctor recommended you and what is your insurance”.
Startled for a moment I asked why I would need a referral and I don’t have insurance.
She replied that they need to bill the insurance company and they usually see patients referred to them by a doctor.
Told her I pay cash and I understand he is the best.
So, she tells me it’s very expensive.
I cut her off, telling her I don’t care. I’m in pain, I’ve already seen two doctors who I don’t trust their diagnosis and I’ve money. That’s cash.
So she tells me it’s $400 bucks!
I laugh and tell her I generally carry $1,000 for emergencies and for me, this is one of those emergencies. I also informed her I wouldn’t even beg a negotiated price, I just want to see the best guy for the job and get a proper and correct diagnosis.
She informs me they have never had a cash customer before and she didn’t know how to handle it. She would need to consult with the doctor and call me back.
So, she calls me and tells me the doctor said to come in the next day at 10am and it’ll be $400 bucks.
No problem.
So I show up and the doctor sees me immediately. Hell, on freakin time. I knew right there I was dealing with the right guy and a professional.
So he puts me under so he can put a camera in my urethra tube.
He finds out what is going on down there and after waking me up from the twilight drug, informs me I have to change my diet with no acidic foods, nuts, meat, cured meats, etc.
Blech!
He shows me pictures and describes how he arrived at his diagnosis and tells me it’s pretty common for men who love spicy foods, all the time.
He also prescribed some drug to help with the pain and healling.
I thank him and go to pay my bill. The office manager informs me it’s $200 bucks. I tell her I didn’t want a negotiated rate and I’m happy to pay what we agreed.
she tells me the insurance company pays less than that and the doctor felt like it was the right thing to and apparently I was pretty funny while I was under.
I shrug and whip out my cash. She doesn’t have change. I tell I’m going to lunch down the street and I’ll come back with the exact amount afterward or she can just take $300.
She laughs and says it’s quite all right.
So I go to lunch and have Hot and Spicy soup and General Tso’s pepper chicken.
I go back and pay the good doctor.
So I follow his instructions to a “T” and all ends up being well.
I call the Hospital that gave me a bill for $2,000 bucks and inform them I’m not paying for an incorrect diagnosis.
She gets testy with me and inform her I paid two other doctors no problemo but, your doctor wasn’t even in the ball park of being correct and the internist said I would have got sicker if I had followed his plan.
She asks if I can get her documentation. I ask why? and she tells me if true she’ll blank out my bill.
So I swing by with all my documentation and she zero’s out my bill on the spot.
Just gotta be strong on yer healthcare.
Death Panels, anyone?
bump
It's coming. My wife is going through treatments for cancer. She gets a mix of chemo drugs, the mix of four or five drugs changes depending on the treatment at the time. Just one, Rituxin, is billed at $12,000 per treatment. Thankfully, our insurance picks up most of the cost, while we pay a still large co-payment. One of our daughters works at the company that develops these drugs. She informs us that it costs them millions of dollars in R&D besides getting approval to sell, and they take huge losses on drug development that can take decades that is never approved. That's why they're expensive.
Not everybody has good insurance, or insurance at all to supplement Medicare. It's going to get ugly for folks who just want to live.
In the past 24 hours, cancer patients’ access to Medicare treatment has been the focus of an alarming headline. In this case, the budget sequestration—an idea originally proposed and now routinely derided by President Obama—is identified as the culprit.
But policymakers and taxpayers alike may want to take a closer look: Immediately ahead, for fiscal year 2013, the total effect of sequestration will be $3 billion. That is the same amount Obamacare is supposed to reduce Medicare spending this year.
But if Medicare patients can’t access vitally needed care because of $6 billion in total reduced Medicare payments, they’d better prepare for next year. That’s when Obamacare cuts an estimated $41 billion out of Medicare—in addition to the Medicare sequestration cuts of $9 billion that year.
The total effect of sequestration on Medicare benefit spending is $100 billion from 2013 to 2023. Those cuts pale in comparison to the $716 billion in Medicare payment reductions required by Obamacare over the same time period. Included in these cuts is a payment reduction of $156 billion for Medicare Advantage plans. That kind of a slice is a lot more than just a “tiny haircut.”
By 2020, Obamacare will reduce overall Medicare spending by more than $100 billion a year.
The $3 billion in 2013 sequestration cuts is practically a rounding error when put in the context of Obamacare’s total Medicare cuts.
Liberals believe that payment cuts and price controls are good public policy. That’s how Medicare is supposed to control costs, right?
Oh, and by the way: These cuts are targeted to Medicare providers. They don’t cut “guaranteed” benefits. After all, that’s what President Obama, Vice President Biden, and their allies in Congress and the media told us, day in and day out, during the entire 2012 presidential campaign. That’s what all the liberals said. So, really, there is nothing for 50 million seniors to worry about, right?
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