Take that and put it in your health care reform pipe and smoke it

[DJofSD]

Yahoo/CNN online article (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Overburdened-doctors-are-cnnm-2582479372.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=2&asset=&ccode=) about what doctors are doing themselves.

[mostpost]

Yahoo/CNN online article (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Overburdened-doctors-are-cnnm-2582479372.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=2&asset=&ccode=) about what doctors are doing themselves.
My former Doctor joined MDVIP. How did that help me? I was expected to pay an annual fee of $1500 to be a member of his practice. This was not covered by my insurance. In theory I would be able to see him whenever I needed to, but since I seldom needed to see him more than three or four times a year that means I would be paying between $375 and $500 per visit.
And while this would have included an annual complete physical, any extraordinary treatments, such as MRI's or CT Scans, or visits to specialists would not be included.
My doctor said this plan would mean he would be able to spend more time with me in each visit, but I have never needed more time than I have now.
Maybe if he was a beautiful woman......
So to me, this was just a way for him to make more money and do less work. I got a new doctor.
Three years after he joined this plan I was still getting correspondence urging me to join. My sister is in the medical field and she told me my doctor is having a hard time getting sufficient patients to make this a success.

[riskman]

Yahoo/CNN online article (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Overburdened-doctors-are-cnnm-2582479372.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=2&asset=&ccode=) about what doctors are doing themselves.

Interesting article. This says a lot:
"Heim said the model works better for physicians who practice in locations where consumers can afford it.

"It won't work in communities where I practice," Heim, of Laurinburg, N.C., said, referring to areas with a high number of uninsured consumers and a middle class that can't afford out-of-pocket membership fees."

This article in itself points out some of the problems of why the system is broken. This would be great for the elderly who have more health issues and require more individual attention, assuming they can afford the cost.

The article gives me the impression that we should pay more for a service that we should be getting in the first place.

[NJ Stinks]

This would be great for the elderly who have more health issues and require more individual attention, assuming they can afford the cost.



The thing is the elderly get 80% of their doctor's visit covered by Medicare. So if a primary doctor charges a senior $200 for a visit, Medicare pays $160 (usually Medicare knocks it down from the $200) and the senior pays $40 at most per visit.

A senior could see their primary doctor 37 times in a year or 3 times a month and still make out better. If a senior is going to see doctors 37 times a year (37 visits times $40 per visit = $1,480), no doubt specialists not covered by this plan are involved - not just the primary doctor.

If you afford the extra $1,500 with little or no hardship, it's probably a good deal since you just bought house visits by your primary doctor.