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The House Bill Is A Terrible Bill For Medical Care And The Economy. Part 3

Stanley Feld M.D.,FACP,MACE

The problem with the economic recovery is increasing unemployment and the increasing deficit spending. A new healthcare entitlement will increase the deficit leading to increased taxes. Increased taxes on large and small business will lead to fewer jobs and less tax revenue. We are experiencing this in our jobless economic recovery. All the new jobs are going to third world countries. Government jobs is the only sector growing.

The House’s 1900 page bill that was passed in less than 72 hours after publication. This was after the Democratic Party controlled congress pledged to be totally transparent.

Americans have a Democratic controlled congress that ignores the will of the people. Americans had no idea of what President Obama meant by change. The Democratic Party leaders do not realize they were elected by independent voters and women. Both groups now seem to have become disillusioned with President Obama and the Democratic majorities.

Last week we heard former President Clinton. He told the Senate to past any healthcare bill even if it is not perfect. You can fix it later.

This week I received the following note. It is a heartfelt note from a practicing obstetrician. She expresses the anger and frustration of many physicians. The note shows the impact the bill will have on the practice of medicine.

My generation of physicians has been told that the new younger physicians will accept change in the future because they do not know any better. We lived in the golden years of medical practice. .

My answer is you are wrong. The satisfaction of being a physician is to have the privilege of relating to patients and treating patients the best you can. The special quality of the patient physician relationship will not be lost on the new breed of physicians.

President Obama’s control and ineffective quantification of healthcare will destroy the patient physician relationship and medical care in America.

President Obama’s task forces will outsource the quantification of healthcare to groups like Leapfrog. Leapfrog knows much about the economics of healthcare but little about the practice of medicine.

Dear Family and Friends,

Where to start……how about from the  beginning……
I’ve been in private practice for 15+ years now.
I’m  44yo. That means I started when I was 29yo….that is YOUNG for a physician.

Consider you are 18yo when you get out of high school (17 yo in my 
case). Add 4 years of college, 4 years of medical school and 4 more years of  residency.
So 12 years of graduate/postgraduate work. Consider being 
200K in debt after those 12 years.
Want to know who is running your  healthcare? It’s not doctors………It’s not people who have one minute of  training in medicine.

Let me share what has happened at MY hospital  in the last 2 weeks. Two examples will follow;
There is an  "organization" called Leapfrog. Here is their link 
http://www.leapfroggroup.org/ . Hospitals are buying into their "program" for rewards and incentives.

Go to the link…..look at their board members. What do you see?? BIG EXECUTIVES…….not a single doctor….not one. Study their website…..It is driving YOUR
healthcare…..no where does  it mention how they get their medical "quality" other than saying our  "experts"……..oh, and yes they have a disclaimer stating they aren’t responsible for anything (in tiny print at the bottom of their website  page).
Now, you can search for hospitals to see Leapfrog’s "Quality" 
of care….. Money driven quality…..
Lets take my department for example… OBSTETRICS: Leapfrog has ONE (ONLY ONE) criteria for quality…..you have to deliver after 39 weeks. Doesn’t matter your fears, 
discomforts, family, prenatal care, baby’s outcome….NOTHING besides you are 39 weeks or greater.
My hospital has now MANDATED that I deliver you  at 39 weeks or greater…..because they want Leapfrog to give them 4 bars  (i.e. highest quality) Now this has NOTHING to do with
true medicine. By text book definition, a full term pregnancy is 37 weeks or  greater.

If you look at my hospital on Leapfrog….we have 1 bar, implying poor quality. Leapfrog even goes so far as to say we have a 31.7% PRETERM delivery rate. This is a LIE! Remember full-term to Leapfrog is 39 weeks……which has NO medical basis.

Consider the patient who previously had a 39 week stillborn…….the patient who is losing her insurance…..the patient whose husband is a pilot and is leaving town…the  patient whose husband is in the military….the patient whose family is  flying in from overseas. The physician hears the patient over and over  again, every office visit….it’s called a relationship.
Do you think  Leapfrog, who is simply bargaining with big executives for better prices, 
cares about the patient’s individual situation……NOT AT ALL….but hospitals want Leapfrog’s 4 bars (better quality) rating, so they get  "rewarded" better. 
So as it stands now, if I deliver a patient before 39 weeks, the hospital will place that in my permanent file. Then they can  choose to "deselect" me and not allow me to deliver at their  hospital.
Physicians are now faced with making ethical  decisions…..do I do what is truly right and best for this patient and get  "deselected"? Or do I do what the hospital tells me to do……..

The unintended consequences will destroy medical care in this country.

This physician is thinking of quitting the practice of obstetrics and gynecology at a time we have a shortage of physicians doing obstetrics. President Obama refuses to deal with the structural problems in the healthcare system such as the need for malpractice reform.

The President must think that when his healthcare plan evolves to complete socialized medicine all physicians will work for the government. Physicians will then be immune to malpractice suits.

Wake up America!! Write the President, Congress, and your local newspaper. Tell your congressional representatives who vote for this bill that you will not vote for them.

Enough is enough.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/CONTACT/

https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

 

The opinions expressed in the blog “Repairing The Healthcare System” are, mine and mine alone.

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