One would imagine that having Medicaid would improve health outcomes given that it removes a price barrier to obtain care. The problem—as with all government programs—is that it removes the personal incentive to seek out the benefits of such a program and to use them wisely.
As a physician, I routinely see medicaid patients who gripe and complain when something is not 100% free. There’s no co-pay for services in my state, which annoys me to no end—not so much out of lost revenue but because it disincentivizes a personal investment in care, a need to get better or any economical thinking in making healthcare decisions.
I look at the calculus of decision-making in my own family, and foremost in our line of thinking is what can most economically get the job done. This doesn’t even make a blip on the radar for Medicaid patients.
In my field we are seeing more and more physicians either moving to conglomerate community-model care or moving to private, cash-only practice. I predict that this will continue to be the trend, with the better care obviously being offered on the free market system.
Funny how the price of plastic surgery and dermatological care has actually decreased over time, whereas other fields have continued to rise.
I’ve always wanted to ask a doctor, how is it to work on someone who is 24 years old, diabetic, smokes, is five foot nine and weighs 300 pounds? Isn’t this just an exercise in futility?