Many observers of the healthcare reform debate have been under the impression that the government and insurance carriers were on opposing sides. Not so! When it was all said and done, the insurance carriers in America and the United States government have joined forces to become the largest insurer of healthcare in the history of the world. The insurance carriers got thirty million new subscribers as their part of the deal and the Democrats got their wish of universal coverage and regulatory control over the insurance carriers. As one commentator described, “ the insurance carriers really are now claim processors for the government. They are virtually guaranteed to make a profit and all they have to do is play by the rules that the government sets up.”
What does this mean for doctors? Probably not as bad as the public option would have been, but pretty darn close. Remember, the current system is bankrupt. Whether or not you thought that universal coverage was a moral issue, it still is a fact that the system is bankrupt. It is almost a certainty that physician fees will decline (where else does the money come from to insure 30 million people), red tape and regulation will go up making it more expensive to operate a physician practice and last, but not least, physician taxes will increase to pay for all of this. It’s a three way hit for physicians.
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#1 by Linda on March 25th, 2010
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Very concerning. We are a middle sized practice and I see a lot of trouble ahead. Quality of healthcare and availability of healthcare are going to suffer and the American people thought that was exactly what this was supposed to help or “make better”. Now what?
#2 by annette on March 25th, 2010
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When physicians close their practices and young people stop enrolling in medical school, that will get the government’s attention. Unfortunately, it will take several years for that to happen. In the meantime, physicians will have to work harder to make less money, downsize personnel, and reduce overhead expense. The American people are not going to like the result of that as we are a “I want it now” society.
#3 by Ray on March 27th, 2010
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Things look bad but what can we do. This is the only profession that does not have any control over how much money you can make. We cannot control fees and our reimbursements are going down, down and further down. There is little motivation to give good service. In the future offices will be swamped with patients but the doctors will make less money. We still have overhead to pay and to keep our income level we will have to see more patients. This is a formula for poor quality care.
#4 by LAVONNA on March 31st, 2010
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Thank you for keeping us informed. We will be relying on companies like HNA to keep us informed and up to date as all of these changes start taking place. We are a single doctor practice, struggling through the years to keep afloat so the smallest changes often have a great impact on us.
#5 by Sherry Krueger on March 31st, 2010
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I agree that we live in an “I want it now society” And this may actually help medical practices. There are many programs and ideas available that can turn a low riembursment rate patient into a cash service patient. Thus using the insurance company as a marketing tool instead of as a means of survival. I have several programs (some free or with free trials) already contracted for this. Email me if you want information at skrueger@hna-net.com
#6 by Sherry Krueger on March 31st, 2010
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I have actually been interviewing writers for weeks now and my biggest hurdle is that AL of them seem to write on behalf of a patient (as that is how they relate). It was a very eye opening experience how few people REALLY understand the plight of the physician. Lavonna, I would like to say a very special THANK YOU to you. You have made our whole day! Sometimes we feel just as beat up and it really warms our hearts that you recognize that EVRYTHING we do is on behalf of our physicians.