***Shock Poll*** Report: 83% of Doctors Have Considered Quitting Over Obamacare!!

This report is very problematical. The AMA made similar claims more than 40 years ago when Medicare was being proposed.

The organized and moneyed portion of the medical profession (mostly the AMA leadership) likes to tell us about how all the doctors are saints who have devoted themselves to healing the sick at enormous personal sacrifice, etc., EXCEPT when the govt does anything to try to monitor (or, worse, limit) the outrageous cost of medical care .... and then (and only then) are there hints from the AMA that these saints are pure mercenaries who would quit their offices and become beachcombers and trench-tampers rather than fill out a govt form. They were lying then, and they're lying now.

Originally posted by Char-Lee

Really? what expenses? after they pay the 150-200 thousand back for school, their expenses should not be that much.
Average.. 2008 general practitioners were $186,044 in 2008. Specialists usually made more, about $339,738 per year.

Originally posted by NavyDoc
THere is a lot more expense to a practice than just paying back a med school loan. You have to employ staff: front office, nurses, billing, techs, and so forth. You have malpractice insurance, liability insurance, renter's/owners insurance. Health insurance for your staff, disability insurance. You have to pay for overhead: power, lights, heat, a/c. You have to pay for maintenance on your building or rent on it. You have the payments for the equipment or rent.........

And the numbers above reflect what the take-home is AFTER they pay for expenses...

reply to post by NavyDoc


I am not sure but the income amounts in the above post ( general practitioners ---$186,044, Specialists--- $339,738 per year) are profits not gross revenues.

Originally posted by ColoradoJens
reply to post by sirhumperdink

 

Perhaps everyone moaning about doctors being in the red should complain about the costs of medical school and force the universities to lower their rates so that we can have more doctors. How about that socialist idea?

CJ

quiet down with that kind of talk if supply meets or exceeds demand the "seller" has less leverage in price negotiations

Originally posted by sirhumperdink

Originally posted by ColoradoJens
reply to post by sirhumperdink

 

Perhaps everyone moaning about doctors being in the red should complain about the costs of medical school and force the universities to lower their rates so that we can have more doctors. How about that socialist idea?

CJ

quiet down with that kind of talk if supply meets or exceeds demand the "seller" has less leverage in price negotiations

I think one thing that would help us all is if people were not running to the Dr every time they have an ache.

I don't know anyone who has seen a Dr in many years. I have not been to a Dr but once in 15 years. Everyone who goes often gets sicker. They prescribe stuff you don't need and usually makes you worse....imo.

If i get very ill with something like cancer, I plan on just croaking and get it over...no insurance anyhow.

reply to post by Char-Lee


agreed ive only gone once in the last five to get a bone set everything else has passed on its own or ive dealt with myself
however i do believe people should see a doctor about twice a year for a general checkup because the costs are far lower (monetarily and to your health) if you actually have something to treat it early on rather than when more noticeable symptoms manifest
im fairly young and would consider myself low risk so i dont worry about it but in the next 5-10 years or so i will probably start

For some reason my first thought was "I hated Doctors until I needed one" is fairly descriptive of those who hate MD's just because they are MD's. Any profession that you can't do without when needed is always the target of bigotry and mistrust.

Folks should ask your own Primary Care Provider. I have and yes, he is considering retirement at 50; he's younger than I am. He has other sources of income a luxury.

My Nephew who began as a surgeon at Bethesda quit surgery and opened a Family Practice because he makes more. The Insurance costs as a surgeon destroyed him and after over twelve years of schooling and over a half million in loans and time served in the military to pay for it he can't work for the under $70,000 he made after insurance. He's doing much better (at least until the last couple of years) as a Family MD. Now he is doing badly again and yes he is talking about quitting and trying something else.

I only know two MD's well enough to ask but they are unanimous in that their income is dropping quickly and they are both thinking of quitting.

The Poll could be accurate. Since the shortage is already real if just ten percent follow through, it would make health care in the US horrible. Just like Europe.

Originally posted by Shoonra
This report is very problematical. The AMA made similar claims more than 40 years ago when Medicare was being proposed.

The organized and moneyed portion of the medical profession (mostly the AMA leadership) likes to tell us about how all the doctors are saints who have devoted themselves to healing the sick at enormous personal sacrifice, etc., EXCEPT when the govt does anything to try to monitor (or, worse, limit) the outrageous cost of medical care .... and then (and only then) are there hints from the AMA that these saints are pure mercenaries who would quit their offices and become beachcombers and trench-tampers rather than fill out a govt form. They were lying then, and they're lying now.

There is a point at which the financial returns will be so low that yes MD's will quit and more importantly people will stop entering the profession to begin with. It's hard to deny that is happening now.

I would never recommend any kid consider the medical profession now. The return is too low for the sacrifice.

It's a perfect storm of government intrusion, regulation, redundant paperwork, frivolous lawsuits followed by insanely large judgements and ever lessening payments for accepting patients on the Dole. The limit is here I think.

Those relying on the government to pay will soon and are already having problems finding an MD who will take them. The government regulation drives their costs through the roof and then the government keeps reducing what they will pay. There are limits I'm afraid.

The highly paid folks people criticize are in Hospital Administrations or a Practice that caters to wealthy patients. The MD's mythical high earnings are in fact a myth for most MD's. The government has seen to that.

Medicaid funds were just cut dramatically and the payment to physicians cut as well. Why would they not quit?

Originally posted by sirhumperdink
reply to post by Char-Lee

 

agreed ive only gone once in the last five to get a bone set everything else has passed on its own or ive dealt with myself
however i do believe people should see a doctor about twice a year for a general checkup because the costs are far lower (monetarily and to your health) if you actually have something to treat it early on rather than when more noticeable symptoms manifest
im fairly young and would consider myself low risk so i dont worry about it but in the next 5-10 years or so i will probably start

edit on 10-7-2012 by sirhumperdink because: (no reason given)

We can't afford to go, they all order tests and they are all expensive. it cost hundreds for my Mother when we took even with medicare. We have no extra.

I don't HATE Doctors, but just like all the ones my Mother has been to, not one seems to care at all about her health! I don't know if the Drs. were always like this or they are just a different type of people now.

But they didn't give a darn about people it was plain to see, and it took 4 Drs. and my other sisters paying the bills to get her just a simple diagnosis...the first 3 didn't even try. One gave her Oxicoden..which is ridiculousness in her case. She didn't take them.

Not sure how "bad" this is going to get... but in my own opinion, we needed a Health Care "reform" one way or the other.

I have friends and family members overseas that's currently on Universal Heath Care.

I also have customers in Canada that talked about it briefly.

From what I've heard so far, the Health Care in Taiwan is #in' great. You just pay an admittance fee and you can practically get cured on whatever.

One of my close relatives in U.S. had an appendix surgery a few years back. The total hospital bill came out to be around the ball park of $18,000 ~ $25,000 USD. Yeah, you heard me right, for a friggin' appendix surgery.

One of my close friends residing in U.S. recently took his grandmother into a hospital. The grandma is in her 80's, having lung infection and needed to be hospitalized for a week+. The cost of hospital stay is $1,500 per day, that's right, PER DAY.

For the same services provided, in Taiwan with their Universal Health Care, you pay no more than an admittance fee of 300 NTD or so, that's like $12 USD roughly to get an appendix removed vs $25,000 ~ $30.000 in U.S.

Folks living in Canada is pretty experiencing similar results. The only complaint that one of my customers had, was that they were not able to "select" a doctor of their liking. So in a sense, beggars can't be choosers.

Personally, I don't like the Obamacare. I do not support the idea of paying an extra 10% personal tax just to cover everyone in the country. Imagine the #ty pay check you get now from Government robbing you blind with Federal, State taxes and what not. Now imagine you have to pay an average of $300 to $500 more each month to cover Obama's crap...

On the other hand, I'm fed up with the U.S. health care calling whatever they see fit as a price of cure. Paying an average person's annual income for an appendix surgery is not only absurd but already INSANE. So even if we don't have Obamacare, we need something else to fix this.

Hospitals and Doctors cannot just call out treatment pricing however they want, the Health Department should be challenged frequently about the amount charged to patients.

I mean, when you charge people $10,000, $50,000 for a surgery, you better friggin' explain in detail where those $50,000 went right? What's the percentage of a cut that the Doctors get? How much does the drugs cost, hospital bed and board and stuff. When the break down becomes apparent, then we need to tackle the most costly items that occurs in Health Care and try to reduce the cost on those specific things.

Well, just my own two cents worth.

reply to post by paxnatus
Heads up 99% of men have considered killing someone,98.9% havent done it.Actions will always speak louder then words so your statement is meaningless bollocks

reply to post by paxnatus


Hey, you and I both made the same prediction almost two weeks ago, except I was off by 3 percentage points.

80% will quit

The thread title should be changed to read:

83% of doctors IN THE TEA PARTY have considered quitting over Obamacare!!!!

Lets see Obamacare has been law for a few years now and very few, if any have quit. (Besides thinking about something is very different than actually doing it - I bet 83%+ employees have thought about hitting their boss but very few actually do it).

Look at places were there is socialized health care - there are no shortage of people who want to be doctors.

Why in the world would doctors quit when they would have MORE paying patients?

Originally posted by Lighterside
reply to post by paxnatus

 

83% of the doctors in this country you say? I'm a little bit skeptical, I know you've stated that the poll is "nonpartisan and unbiased", but your source is from a site founded by Tucker Carlson... so... I think I'll remain skeptical until looking further into it.

Unbiased?

Never trust a man with a bow tie.

Let me tell you a very true story about the kind of doctors who would quit because of government regulations.

This is a totally true story (PM me and I will tell you what newspaper articles to look in).

There was this very, very well known doctor who decided not to take Medicare anymore. He was so highly regarded, I decided to take my mother there anyway. He said he didn't take Medicare because he could get paid more and not have to deal with government regulations.

Unfortunately, my mother had surgery done by one of his highly, highly regarded associates in his practice. The surgery was a disaster and she became permanently disabled.

A few years later, another doctor filed a Federal case alleging these doctors would have untrained interns do their surgeries so they could book tons during the day.

It turns out he didn't want to take Medicare so their wouldn't be strict over sight of his practice.

Honestly, my mother would have been in much better shape if this doctor would have just quit and became a stock broker.

reply to post by paxnatus


The Hippocratic Oath is largely ignored in the united states, but it offers an easy solution.

I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.

Start actually following it and the shortage of doctors wouldn't be a problem!

I am curious though. Since teaching is a big part of the Hippocratic Oath, are these doctors intent on teaching, or just walking away for good? The article said walking away from their practices. It didn't say finding another profession. If they did decide to do that, wouldn't they be violating the oath?

reply to post by paxnatus


I'm not buying it, my guess is that 100% of them will receive 83% more mullah. But if 83% were to quit, that would be good reason to thank God for his infinite mercy. 90% would be better, but 83% is a good start.

So, let 'em all quit if they want. After the shakeup, they will be back, for less money, like the rest of working force.
We need less Prima Donna's and more honest work for a day's pay. I say make it illegal to sue them, also, which gets rid of that farce that also drives health care through the roof.

That is great if the doctors would quit... they would be able to do what the government wouldn’t do for us, which is stop Obamacare...

There are models, right here in the USA, that one can look to in order to get an idea of what could possibly be under Obamacare.

In my State of Louisiana, there is what ultimately amounts to free healthcare for those who can not afford it. Louisiana State University operates a total of 8 hospitals State wide and are managed by the Health Care Services Division. When I say this is free health care.. I mean just that. It is free. You pay for any medication, which you can do right at the hospital for a discounted cost.

To give an idea of what "discount" means, the Meds I recently received cost me $50.00 at my local Walgreens. $25 for the antibiotics (generic, not name brand) and I paid $25.00 for the pain medication (again generic, not name brand. The pain killer was hydricodone aka Loritab" So this is not any "fancy" meds. Very basic stuff. Had I purchased at the LSU complex I would have paid $8.00 total. That is what I mean by "discount".

Care itself is free to those who can not afford it. To receive free care- you have to prove your income or lack of one and show why you are unable to pay. In some cases, care is given at a discounted cost. Really all you do is give them your name, SS#, employer and bring in your last 5 paycheck stubs showing your income.

LSU Health Care System

Now this is both good and bad and I can explain it with my very own experiences with 2 very different cases. One is an emergency case involving infection and surgery. The second also involves surgery, but is completely non life threatening in any way.

If you have an emergency, you will get top notch care, but expect to wait. I recently had a cyst in my groin which had become infected. In a matter of two hours, a small lump that I had noticed that day (smaller than a dime) had turned into a softball sized abscess. I arrived at the hospital around 2pm. I finally saw a doctor in the emergency room at 11pm. After running some test and seeing that my white blood cell count was "through the roof", it was decided I would have to have surgery and I was hooked up to IV's. I stayed in a very nice room, had all the best antibiotics, some great pain killers hooked to my IV, and the staff was wonderful. After waiting to be seen for 9 hours, the care I did receive was outstanding. To be honest, it was the best stay I have ever had in a hospital, and I have had several.

There was an issue about when I would have surgery. They were not sure when an actual surgeon would make it in. I was told at first it would be the very next morning. Then I was told it may be a day later. I was operated on 26 hours after I arrived in the ER. I was released about 2 hours after waking up from surgery, so I spent roughly 29 hours there in total. All in all my experience was good, the only real thing I can complain about was how long it takes to see a doctor.

So what about other issues? I currently suffer from a condition known as Plantar Fibromatosis in BOTH my feet. I began the process of seeing doctors in the LSU Healthcare system about 3 1/2 years ago. Long story short- this is the process...

I go to the emergency room at my local LSU hospital, they refer me to a doctor inside the hospital. I wait roughly 3 months for the appointment date. I go see the doctor who then refers me to another hospital in another city. You are told the new doctor will contact you and set your appointment. After about 3 months you will receive a letter scheduling an appointment with the doctor you just saw who does nothing but gives you more pills and refers you to another city and hospital. Another 3-4 month wait. Turn out the other hospitals are not taking new referrals at this time, but you get an appointment in 3 more months with your previous doctor who gives you more pills and refers you to another hospital.

This is the game I have been playing for 3 and a half years now. Originally I showed up with this condition in my right foot. During the course of my cat and mouse health care, I have developed the same condition in my left foot. The act of walking is a very miserable experience. Most people who actually look at my the bottom of my feet give me the same two looks. They look at me like I am crazy or they look at me like I am Superman. I used to run, stay fit- not anymore. I can't. Any activity that requires me to be on my feet for longer than 30 mins at a time, I must plan carefully. Including wrapping my feet with bandages to prevent the lumps from swelling. In the end it doesn't matter, if im on my feet to long one day- the next day I am off my feet holding ice packs to them and I have no choice. I literally can not walk. I always know when I overdo it cause the lumps bruise and turn purple.

That's "free healthcare" in action for ya!

Obamacare? No thank you.