Fraud and staff theft are on the rise. Why is this happening? One reason is a spiraling economy. Another is lack of physician oversight. As the operation of medical practices gets more complex administratively, physicians are having a hard time staying on top of it. It may not be just lack of time…many physicians lack the expertise to manage their practices. On top of that, in many cases, doctors are unwilling to pay for the talent that is required to manage a medical practice. Just as medicine has become more specialized, so has administrating a medical practice. There are so many ways that the doctors can lose money or more importantly, get into trouble for missteps on part of the staff.

There are several changes in Medicare, which are required by the Healthcare Reform Bill, which took effect on January 1, 2011.   These changes largely affect the amount paid by Medicare for Medicare participants for drugs and doctors’ services.  Here is a brief recap of the changes which occurred on January 1, 2011:

Everyone’s looking for someone to blame for the ills of our healthcare problems. Is it the insurance companies who pay their executives too much, or the patients who overuse the system, or is it the doctors’ themselves? Regardless of who is to blame, it is a certainty that doctors can play a major role in bringing positive changes to the problem. However, it can’t be business as usual. Doctors need to challenge some of their most fundamental beliefs and ways of doing business. Here are some questions to ask:

Do I have a sour outlook about the future of healthcare or do I believe there is a way to make my practice more satisfying than ever?

1. Am I thinking out-of-the-box or am I locked into the old, outdated healthcare system?
2. Am I looking for ways that I, as provider, can save healthcare costs or do I spend my day resenting/fighting the insurance companies?
3. Have I looked at how I might be able to help my patients PREVENT their health problems or do I just fix/manage problems?
4. Am I looking at how I can work in conjunction with alternative modalities that most of my patients are using?

Doctors will soon be presented with two choices; either be absorbed by the system (that healthcare reform will create) or proactively reconsider and reshape how you practice.

On Monday, January 31st, Federal Judge Roger Vinson, declared the Healthcare Reform Bill unconstitutional, setting up a path for the new law to be heard by the US Supreme Court.  It may take weeks or months until the final decision on the Healthcare Reform Bill is reached.  In the meantime, we should discuss real healthcare reform that can benefit patients and doctors while saving money throughout the whole system.  There are several areas where healthcare reform can be achieved that actually make sense.

Sixteen highly regarded physicians representing many fields -cardiology, oncology, general surgery, internal medicine, and others, assembled at the Grand Hyatt in New York City to discuss the impact of the currently proposed health bills on their patients. As reported by Betsy McCaughey of www.defendyourhealthcare.us, here are the main concerns addressed by these physicians: