AMA President-Elect on WJ discussing health care reform.

I think where the AMA stands on health care reform is pretty significant.

He all but nailed how I feel on this issue. All parties need to be heard...single-payer, the dreaded insurance companies, the AMA, the Bar Association...get everything on the table and see where all the players stand. Then see who lines up with the players.

For many years the AMA stood in the way of healthcare reform and were lukewarm at best in '93. They feared "socializing" medicine and the government "playing god". Instead of the government doing it, the insurance companies did. Using the guise of malpractice, they were able to dictate how many doctors operate...always looking at the bottom line. The AMA is slowly coming around to seeing the mess as for many years they represented the wealthiest doctors. Now many are forced into HMOs, PPOs and other insurance run rackets that keep their premiums high and this is passed along to patients.

A government funded, single-payer option needs to be incorporated into any healthcare reform...but I'm still not sure how supportive the AMA is.

they spend a great deal of time just trying to get paid for stuff and when they do they are forced to take less money then they should. that is why more and more doctors are not even dealing with some insurance companies anymore.

I helped my father run his practice in his final days. We had nothing but headaches with the insurance companies. Many times we waited to file to see if the company was honoring the claim...and then there was the battle to justify why a test or treatment was recommended. They told you how much things were worth to the penny...and unless you filled out the forms properly and kept close track.

Many of my father's contemporaries retired as their malpractice insurance continued to rise, insurance companies became more repressive and private practices were all but eliminated. Many doctors today are no more than factory workers.

Cheers...

but they do have to pay their bills and what's the point if they can't make a living. my doctor has exploded in size of her practice. there are more patients and less time for each patient. the only ones winning in the system we have right now are the hhealthcare companies. and it worries me to see them with their fingers on any reform. i doubt with them involved any 'reform' will be anything but just more money for them. what's it going to take for people to realize what's going on!! how many people will have to be priced out of their health insurance before enough people are going to fight for a better system!

As a kid, I'd see my father see 20-30 patients a day...each one paying $5 for their regular exam. The emphasis was on prevention and many of his patients lived in their 80's and beyond. Each one reflected savings as many had serious illneses caught in the early stages. These days that's only available to those willing to pay high premiums or can afford the co-pays and other extra costs that aren't covered. Personally, I spent 15 years with minimal or no insurance...taking the chance cause the expense was too great or one didn't want to fight the system. I got a rude awakening when my son was born. We had thought we had fulfilled paying all the deductables and then found out that since our son was a new "addition to our policy" another deductable kicked in...I had to pay $2,500 dollars that I hadn't planned/budgeted for. I'm sure that amount is far greater today.

There must be pressure applied to both the Administration and on the Insurance companies themselves that people want REAL reform...not reshuffling papers and titles. As Dr. Dean pointed out, there are plenty of profits to be made in selling supplemental policies or make the option available that if a person wants to privately insure, they can. Create a more competitive market for both the private and the government programs.

Cheers...