What if the medical profession actually provided preventative health care, focused on diet & lifestyle, rather than being puppets of the drug companies? Doctors live off the sick, and holistic practitioners have their own set of unregulated scams. WTF do we do for real healthcare in America? eg Niacin is much more effective & safe than Lipitor & related Rx drugs, but what doc will tell you that?
One of the ways that worked for a while (until we lost our nerve and stopped it) was Capitation. Doctors were given so much per patient per year and there job was to keep them healthy. Doing MORE didn\’t get the Dr. more money. I am told that, thousands of years ago, in China, doctors were given a set amount annually. If their patient died, the doctors were beheaded. I guess you\’d call that DE-Capitation?
The entire medical and insurance industry is corrupt. You have a headache and you are referred for a $1000.00 scan that you don\’t need. Your tonsils are swollen because they are doing their job and they are removed. Your blood pressure is high because you are afraid of your doctor and what he might do to you, and you are given high blood pressure medication for the rest of your life. Your cholesterol is perfectly normal (by all other countries standards) and you are put on Lipitor for the rest of your life . A vast majority of medical interventions are not needed and a waste of money – a complete scam! And the doctors all know it. These doctors who were caught were simply not scamming within the rules. Doctors are nothing more than pawns for the drug companies. Each and every medical doctor who is not actively participating in trying to change this broken system, is knowingly involved in the greatest of all scams and are personally responsible for the sickest of all nations. Don\’t blame the patients! They have been stripped of their ability to take charge and make wise decisions by an arrogant medical establishment. The insurance industry loves the high cost of medical care. If it was cheap, no one would buy health insurance. The entire industry is fear driven. What a beautiful scam. It makes Cheney and Halliburton look like chior boys. At least the doctors that were arrested did not kill anyone. Their fellow doctors on the other hand killed over 850,000 patients just last year – and got paid while doing it!
The entire medical and insurance industry is corrupt. You have a headache and you are referred for a $1000.00 scan that you don\’t need. Your tonsils are swollen because they are doing their job and they are removed. Your blood pressure is high because you are afraid of your doctor and what he might do to you, and you are given high blood pressure medication for the rest of your life. Your cholesterol is perfectly normal (by all other countries standards) and you are put on Lipitor for the rest of your life . A vast majority of medical interventions are not needed and a waste of money – a complete scam! And the doctors all know it. These doctors who were caught were simply not scamming within the rules. Doctors are nothing more than pawns for the drug companies. Each and every medical doctor who is not actively participating in trying to change this broken system, is knowingly involved in the greatest of all scams and are personally responsible for the sickest of all nations. Don\’t blame the patients! They have been stripped of their ability to take charge and make wise decisions by an arrogant medical establishment. The insurance industry loves the high cost of medical care. If it was cheap, no one would buy health insurance. The entire industry is fear driven. What a beautiful scam. It makes Cheney and Halliburton look like chior boys. At least the doctors that were arrested did not kill anyone. Their fellow doctors on the other hand killed over 850,000 patients just last year – and got paid while doing it!
If your patient is not practicing a reasonably healthy lifestyle then whatever damage they do to themselves that results in illness or death would be considered a self-inflicted wound, or suicide
.
Example: I know smoking MAY kill me or cause other health issues, so I sign a contract with my doctor that says he is not to be held liable if I die from lung cancer or end up with a hole in my throat and a voice box. If I drink like a fish, it\’s my fault if I need a new liver, not the doctor\’s.
The pay while you are healthy plan works because the patient is expected to do their best to maintain their health. If the patient ends up dying because the doctor misdiagnosed pancreatic cancer by assuming early warning symptoms in an otherwise healthy woman was simple diabetes; and (like my mother) the patient dies a slow and excruciatingly painful death…
Well, I for one don\’t believe that doctor deserves to be paid. And frankly, he owes me death benefits, because if he\’d found the cancer in its early stages (done the test like I asked because mom\’s lifestyle didn\’t indicate a propensity for adult diabetes and no one else in the family has ever had it) it would have been operable and she\’d still be alive.
Jane Q. Public – I am sorry for your loss. If you did suggest an imaging study and your mothers doctor refused – I\’m sure that makes your hurt and anger even worse. In many cases pancreatic cancer is very difficult to cure, even if caught early and treated with surgery. It really is one of the worst cancers a person can get.
What you suggest about the smoking and drinking wouldn\’t work – at least not in the US. Ethically, medical systems couldn\’t deny treatment to someone simply because they are the cause of their own disease. I can\’t tell you how many times I saw alcoholics brought into the ER, allowed to sober up, given the card for the local AA meetings and caringly encouraged to get sober – only to see them back again within the week. (Healthcare cost$ – each visit probably cost minimum $200-300 and usually the hospital has to write this cost off because the patient has no insurance.) Yes, I know, alcoholism is a disease. Would you be the person standing in the ER doors blocking the stretcher from rolling in the door? What if this guy vomits and suffocates on his vomitus? Or, how about the lifelong smoker who is dearly loved by her 25 family members and has severe emphysema. Could you deny her a breathing treatment when you see she might die from not getting it?
Capitation simply allows the insurance companies to keep piling more patients onto a physicians panel without allowing for the time he/she will need to properly care for them. Do you like 5-7 minutes for doctors visit? Docs face falling reimbursement from the gov\’t and private insurance, plus increasing costs to run their offices due to HIPAA. I know, I know poor doctors . . . but if put your life on hold for 11 (family doc like me) or more years to pursue a profession and accumulate typically greater than $200,000 in debt to get there. . . I want to make more than the RN who works (usually very hard) beside me with only 4 years of schooling.
Thoracic sympathectomies are the treatment of choice for palmer hypeerhidrosis or \”sweaty palms\”. Creams and botox simply do not work. I realize sensationalism sells, but you should try to stick to the facts.
I had emergency surgery performed on me by one of the doctors mentioned in this article a few years ago. I had been scheduled for a routine procedure weeks later, but I began exhibiting symptoms on Saturday afternoon which meant that something needed to be done sooner. My scheduled surgeon was not available, the mentioned doctor was on call and he spent much time on the phone with me explaining what was happening and the possibilities. Saturday night the problem accelerated and he advised me to go to the hospital, where I was admitted. The doctor operated on me early the next morning, the surgery was successful, and I healed quickly. Much of his weekend involved me and my problem.
This man is a gifted surgeon and a good doctor. Whether or not he is found at fault here, I must wonder whether something is wrong with a system where a skilled individual cannot be compensated commensurately with his talent and performance. The fact is that exceptional young men are no longer choosing medicine as a profession in the numbers they once did since they can earn much more in easier careers.
I am a physician myself and have seen reimbursements from insurance companies decline precipitously over the years, yet drug companies continue to make record profits and the executives of the insurance companies I participate with give themselves major bonuses each year. I can see why the docs may have done what they did, but I am also mad because they let their greed take over. The article vilifies \”greedy\” physicians, however, one never hears about how little reimbursements we get for performing surgeries and seeing patients. Just want people to know that there are two sides to be considered when it comes to insurance companies. And please don\’t lump all doctors into the \”fraudulent\” category. Most of us are hard working, honest people.
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What if the medical profession actually provided preventative health care, focused on diet & lifestyle, rather than being puppets of the drug companies? Doctors live off the sick, and holistic practitioners have their own set of unregulated scams. WTF do we do for real healthcare in America? eg Niacin is much more effective & safe than Lipitor & related Rx drugs, but what doc will tell you that?
One of the ways that worked for a while (until we lost our nerve and stopped it) was Capitation. Doctors were given so much per patient per year and there job was to keep them healthy. Doing MORE didn\’t get the Dr. more money. I am told that, thousands of years ago, in China, doctors were given a set amount annually. If their patient died, the doctors were beheaded. I guess you\’d call that DE-Capitation?
The entire medical and insurance industry is corrupt. You have a headache and you are referred for a $1000.00 scan that you don\’t need. Your tonsils are swollen because they are doing their job and they are removed. Your blood pressure is high because you are afraid of your doctor and what he might do to you, and you are given high blood pressure medication for the rest of your life. Your cholesterol is perfectly normal (by all other countries standards) and you are put on Lipitor for the rest of your life . A vast majority of medical interventions are not needed and a waste of money – a complete scam! And the doctors all know it. These doctors who were caught were simply not scamming within the rules. Doctors are nothing more than pawns for the drug companies. Each and every medical doctor who is not actively participating in trying to change this broken system, is knowingly involved in the greatest of all scams and are personally responsible for the sickest of all nations. Don\’t blame the patients! They have been stripped of their ability to take charge and make wise decisions by an arrogant medical establishment. The insurance industry loves the high cost of medical care. If it was cheap, no one would buy health insurance. The entire industry is fear driven. What a beautiful scam. It makes Cheney and Halliburton look like chior boys. At least the doctors that were arrested did not kill anyone. Their fellow doctors on the other hand killed over 850,000 patients just last year – and got paid while doing it!
The entire medical and insurance industry is corrupt. You have a headache and you are referred for a $1000.00 scan that you don\’t need. Your tonsils are swollen because they are doing their job and they are removed. Your blood pressure is high because you are afraid of your doctor and what he might do to you, and you are given high blood pressure medication for the rest of your life. Your cholesterol is perfectly normal (by all other countries standards) and you are put on Lipitor for the rest of your life . A vast majority of medical interventions are not needed and a waste of money – a complete scam! And the doctors all know it. These doctors who were caught were simply not scamming within the rules. Doctors are nothing more than pawns for the drug companies. Each and every medical doctor who is not actively participating in trying to change this broken system, is knowingly involved in the greatest of all scams and are personally responsible for the sickest of all nations. Don\’t blame the patients! They have been stripped of their ability to take charge and make wise decisions by an arrogant medical establishment. The insurance industry loves the high cost of medical care. If it was cheap, no one would buy health insurance. The entire industry is fear driven. What a beautiful scam. It makes Cheney and Halliburton look like chior boys. At least the doctors that were arrested did not kill anyone. Their fellow doctors on the other hand killed over 850,000 patients just last year – and got paid while doing it!
If your patient is not practicing a reasonably healthy lifestyle then whatever damage they do to themselves that results in illness or death would be considered a self-inflicted wound, or suicide
.
Example: I know smoking MAY kill me or cause other health issues, so I sign a contract with my doctor that says he is not to be held liable if I die from lung cancer or end up with a hole in my throat and a voice box. If I drink like a fish, it\’s my fault if I need a new liver, not the doctor\’s.
The pay while you are healthy plan works because the patient is expected to do their best to maintain their health. If the patient ends up dying because the doctor misdiagnosed pancreatic cancer by assuming early warning symptoms in an otherwise healthy woman was simple diabetes; and (like my mother) the patient dies a slow and excruciatingly painful death…
Well, I for one don\’t believe that doctor deserves to be paid. And frankly, he owes me death benefits, because if he\’d found the cancer in its early stages (done the test like I asked because mom\’s lifestyle didn\’t indicate a propensity for adult diabetes and no one else in the family has ever had it) it would have been operable and she\’d still be alive.
Jane Q. Public – I am sorry for your loss. If you did suggest an imaging study and your mothers doctor refused – I\’m sure that makes your hurt and anger even worse. In many cases pancreatic cancer is very difficult to cure, even if caught early and treated with surgery. It really is one of the worst cancers a person can get.
What you suggest about the smoking and drinking wouldn\’t work – at least not in the US. Ethically, medical systems couldn\’t deny treatment to someone simply because they are the cause of their own disease. I can\’t tell you how many times I saw alcoholics brought into the ER, allowed to sober up, given the card for the local AA meetings and caringly encouraged to get sober – only to see them back again within the week. (Healthcare cost$ – each visit probably cost minimum $200-300 and usually the hospital has to write this cost off because the patient has no insurance.) Yes, I know, alcoholism is a disease. Would you be the person standing in the ER doors blocking the stretcher from rolling in the door? What if this guy vomits and suffocates on his vomitus? Or, how about the lifelong smoker who is dearly loved by her 25 family members and has severe emphysema. Could you deny her a breathing treatment when you see she might die from not getting it?
Capitation simply allows the insurance companies to keep piling more patients onto a physicians panel without allowing for the time he/she will need to properly care for them. Do you like 5-7 minutes for doctors visit? Docs face falling reimbursement from the gov\’t and private insurance, plus increasing costs to run their offices due to HIPAA. I know, I know poor doctors . . . but if put your life on hold for 11 (family doc like me) or more years to pursue a profession and accumulate typically greater than $200,000 in debt to get there. . . I want to make more than the RN who works (usually very hard) beside me with only 4 years of schooling.
more later – gotta go
Thoracic sympathectomies are the treatment of choice for palmer hypeerhidrosis or \”sweaty palms\”. Creams and botox simply do not work. I realize sensationalism sells, but you should try to stick to the facts.
I had emergency surgery performed on me by one of the doctors mentioned in this article a few years ago. I had been scheduled for a routine procedure weeks later, but I began exhibiting symptoms on Saturday afternoon which meant that something needed to be done sooner. My scheduled surgeon was not available, the mentioned doctor was on call and he spent much time on the phone with me explaining what was happening and the possibilities. Saturday night the problem accelerated and he advised me to go to the hospital, where I was admitted. The doctor operated on me early the next morning, the surgery was successful, and I healed quickly. Much of his weekend involved me and my problem.
This man is a gifted surgeon and a good doctor. Whether or not he is found at fault here, I must wonder whether something is wrong with a system where a skilled individual cannot be compensated commensurately with his talent and performance. The fact is that exceptional young men are no longer choosing medicine as a profession in the numbers they once did since they can earn much more in easier careers.
Upon conviction, these three physicians should be put in front of a firing squad and shot. That\’s the kind of leadership we need in this country.
I am a physician myself and have seen reimbursements from insurance companies decline precipitously over the years, yet drug companies continue to make record profits and the executives of the insurance companies I participate with give themselves major bonuses each year. I can see why the docs may have done what they did, but I am also mad because they let their greed take over. The article vilifies \”greedy\” physicians, however, one never hears about how little reimbursements we get for performing surgeries and seeing patients. Just want people to know that there are two sides to be considered when it comes to insurance companies. And please don\’t lump all doctors into the \”fraudulent\” category. Most of us are hard working, honest people.