KEEP SENDING THE CHECKS. WE WILL TELL YOU WHEN YOU HAVE PAID US ENOUGH.

There was a somewhat distressing and revealing article in the Albuquerque Journal’s Business Outlook section on October 25th. It was an interview of Dr. William G. Plested III by Journal reporter Winthrop Quigley. Quigley frequently writes on medical and insurance topics.

The article was entitled “Doing Math and Medicare”. Plested was the immediate past president of the American Medical Association. Plested condemned Medicare fee cuts and raised the oft hoisted canard that unless Medicare keeps raising physician fees, physicians will stop treating Medicare recipients. Heard it since 1965.

Plested also believes that Medicare fees should be pegged to a medical inflation index.. Further, the article stated that Plested is dismissive of efficiency improvements, productivity gains, and technological improvements in practice management by providers to offset fee reductions.

FOUR FEET AND A SNOUT IN THE TROUGH.

Increases in the cost of healthcare far outpace the overall rate of inflation in the United States. In fact, they often run double, or even more, than annual increases in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Increases in the cost of healthcare strain government budgets, raise employee benefit costs for employees, decrease worker take-home pay, and divert capital and resources that could fuel economic growth. Oh, and there are those pesky individuals that do not have insurance because of the exorbitant costs of coverage.

So what does the good Dr. and lobbyist prescribe? Cost-plus reimbursement, basically. Keep raising our fees as healthcare inflation goes up, and our fee increases will keep healthcare inflation humming right along.

WHAT’S GOOD ENOUGH FOR BLACKWATER AND HALLIBURTON IS GOOD ENOUGH FOR OLD DOC GIBBS.

The Author recognizes that medical providers are faced with frequent cost increases and occasional regulatory burdens. But all businesses and organizations face this pressure. When these increases cannot be passed on through price increases, rational organizations will look to cuts costs and improve productivity. (In fact, rational organizations will always work to cut costs and improve productivity to increase profit margins, but that is another topic.) If barbers and bowling center operators can cut costs and raise their productivity, surely doctors with their 20+ years of education can trim (or liposuck) the fat from their practices. Or they can hire consultants to tell them how to cut costs and improve productivity.

Most providers that the Author speaks with recognize that costs cannot continue to rise exponentially. They also recognize that there must be a mechanism to provide adequate health benefit coverage to all. In addition to being in a provider’s own self-interest so that payment for services can be assured, many providers believe that healthcare coverage is a basic right that should be extended to all. (The Author does.) Many, probably most, people in the healthcare field work there to help others and relieve pain and suffering. This is especially true for care-givers in lower-paying practice areas such as pediatrics, family medicine, long-term care and gerontology.

ANALYZING AND THINKING IN THE DESERT OF THE REAL SO TALK RADIO PERSONALITIES DO NOT HAVE TO!