We constantly are told that “while ObamaCare might not be perfect, the right has not come up with a better plan.” Is it possible that we do not need a “plan” at all? Think about it. Has the federal government set up a food plan for all? A housing plan? Is the Secretary of Whatever […]
Question: If a $600/month insurance policy only costs the individual $33, what does it REALLY cost? Answer: $600, with $567 less in purchasing power for the hard-working taxpayer who is subsidizing it. Smoke and mirrors make for bad policy. When we buy any type of insurance, we weigh the benefits of the policy against the […]
I am a physician in private practice who enjoys taking care of elderly patients. Because most retirees over age 65 who want to be insured have no choice but to enroll in the Medicare program, I have continued to cooperate with the program. Many of my physician colleagues have opted out of Medicare, and I […]
There is no question that the President wants a “single payer,” where hospitals and physicians are all paid from a single source, a single government-run program funded by general taxation. The fact that this leads to shortages, waiting lines, and rationing does not seem to concern those who have this single-minded goal. Before he became […]
The American Board of Internal Medicine is on a mission to curtail unnecessary medical testing, suggesting that physicians order too much and thus drive up the cost of care. Dr. Christine K. Cassel, president and CEO of the ABIM claims to be looking at the big picture. “The campaign is not about rationing or withholding […]
In the recent AMNews, June 7, 2010, pp 6-7, we physicians were given talking points on how to tell our patients about ObamaCare. It was so full of “happy-speak” that one must wonder if the AMA has paid lobbyists for the Administration. A typical question might be, “What’s in it for me?” We are to […]
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
From the patients in my office we can learn why Medicare and Medicaid cannot control costs. Neither the President, the Congress, nor learned journals are telling these stories. A spry, cheerful patient told me that she had fainted under the hair dryer in her beauty salon. The rescue squad rushed her to the emergency room […]
