Where Have All The Doctors Gone?
I have done no research on this topic other than personal experience. Being an old geezer, I regularly visit a number of doctors who specialize in various branches of medicine. Other than my G.P. doctor, I attend a cardiologist, an endocrinologist, a neurologist, and an urologist. Within the past year, the following has occurred: The endocrinologist sold his practice to another practice which has three locations in the area. The other three M.D.'s have retired. The endocrinologist's practice has been taken over by a group of Indian and Syrian doctors, who were educated overseas but got their board certifications and residencies in the USA. I have yet to find a replacement neurologist, however, my G.P. is doing a good job as a substitute. I have interviewed several urologists and so far, have I have not been satisfied. I did find a cardiologist. He is a young local man educated in Florida. He's not a M.D. but a D.O. However, his references are A1..
As my wife and I searched we had a revelation. There were in our area, hardly any American educated M.D.'s practicing in my here. As you all know, the internet is the mighty Wizard of Information who puts the whole world into my computer.At first, mainly out of curiosity, I tried to find American educated M.D.'s or at the very least a doctor who spoke English in a way that I could easily understand. I searched within my town, then adjacent towns, then cities further away. Finally, I wound up at the largest city in the area, but it was over 30 miles away.
Has anyone had a similar experience?Has becoming a M.D. lost its prestige or ability to produce income? Was Obamacare a contributing factor? What, if anything, is going on?
As my wife and I searched we had a revelation. There were in our area, hardly any American educated M.D.'s practicing in my here. As you all know, the internet is the mighty Wizard of Information who puts the whole world into my computer.At first, mainly out of curiosity, I tried to find American educated M.D.'s or at the very least a doctor who spoke English in a way that I could easily understand. I searched within my town, then adjacent towns, then cities further away. Finally, I wound up at the largest city in the area, but it was over 30 miles away.
Has anyone had a similar experience?Has becoming a M.D. lost its prestige or ability to produce income? Was Obamacare a contributing factor? What, if anything, is going on?
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You tell 'em, doc.
We fail to realize that Health Insurance is in no way the responsibility of government. Other than relatively small volunteer organizations, there is no way that one size fits all can accomodate all the variations in healthcare without excluding preexisting conditions without charging huge fees or having huge deductibles.Now that the stupids in Washington have committed us to this type of unfeasable insurance, the genie cannot be stuffed back into the bottle if the politicians desire re-election.
I'm good friends with our doctor and he and I talk often of this - usually him sharing related stories. He is fighting to keep his own practice but it seems "the system" is fighting him tooth-and-nail.
"Now more than ever, people need to learn how to stay healthy, avoid toxic processed foods, and educate themselves about their health issues so they can make informed decisions on what limited care they will have access to." Exactly my take. I'm an engineer working in the healthcare industry. The general public has no idea how this system works. If they did, they'd all be saying what you're saying in those quotes. I tell people, "If you find yourself in a hospital, get the hell out as fast as you can."
Some tech guy will take his billions and buy up old cruise ships and Navy ships, refit them as medical facilities, and operate them just outside US territorial waters to avoid all this nonsense.
Most physicians here have no problem prescribing opiods. The only restriction is no more than a 30 day supply at one time, and pharmacies readily dispense the drugs (with a view of the driver's license or other government ID). Opiod abuse is a problem, but law enforcement and targeting distributors, rather than denying the meds to patients have been the chosen methods to reduce the problem.
We're seeing concierge doctor practice grow, as well as doctor co-ops with subscriptions that cover all non-emergency care. We also have the Surgery Center, that does not accept insurance, and advertises its charges for operations online. The state is becoming an experimental ground for returning the relationship to a doctor-patient connection.
Look for cash only business models. Concierge practice may set you free!
Why would an honorable person volunteer to work as a slave?
Medicare is single payer
Medicaid is single payer
VA is single payer
Robert Reich was honest when he declared:
" -Older people should just die- they're "too expensive"
-There should be "less innovation" in medical technology
-You should not expect to live longer than your parents."
Again, look for market options and solutions. If you give up and go with what the government gets you, then you are chatting in the wrong web site. Italy has socialized medicine but allows for cash health care. There is no way to have equal access for all unless everyone gets denied access equally. Those who can afford it will never settle for that.
Ben C.
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