TIME raises the curtain on medical providers.

[Beet]

http://healthland.time.com/2013/02/20/bitter-pill-why-medical-bills-are-killing-us/4/

[Sbane]

What do you mean by "providers"?

[Beet]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

[Sbane]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

[opebo]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

The con-artist kind apparently.  Have you ever met any other kind?

[Sbane]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

The con-artist kind apparently.  Have you ever met any other kind?

I have met the kind desperately trying to cover their ass so they don't get sued for a Million dollars.

[Beet]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

All of 'em, your friend especially.

Seriously though, just read the article.

[Sbane]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

All of 'em, your friend especially.

Seriously though, just read the article.

Haha, ok. You seriously think family doctors are making a killing, eh? Whatever.

Why don't we focus on how to stop overutalization of medical equipment instead? Doctors order extra tests in a lot of cases because they want to protect themselves against lawsuits. In Hospitals, there are other incentives in play of course.

[Beet]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

All of 'em, your friend especially.

Seriously though, just read the article.

Haha, ok. You seriously think family doctors are making a killing, eh? Whatever.

Why don't we focus on how to stop overutalization of medical equipment instead? Doctors order extra tests in a lot of cases because they want to protect themselves against lawsuits. In Hospitals, there are other incentives in play of course.

Yeah sure, lawsuits are a problem- as the article points out.

But the immunity of doctors from criticism is part of the problem, too. Yeah, a lot of doctors all around the country are overutilizing and colluding to increase their bargaining power with the insurance companies and lessening price competition. The market result of this is cost inflation, pure and simple.

Insurance companies are demonized when, in reality, the insurance companies are on the same side as consumers and taxpayers- it's in their interest to minimize costs. The doctors are idolized, and when you have a bunch of white lab coats on Capitol Hill they're treated as untouchable, when in fact they and the hospitals are the problem.

[Sbane]

I completely agree with you about insurance companies, as you would have realized if you read the other thread about this topic. I just don't think lumping all doctors into the Sam group is the way to go. Many with their own practice don't make that much money. The hospitals and the medical equipment companies should get the most blame.

[Torie]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

All of 'em, your friend especially.

Seriously though, just read the article.

Haha, ok. You seriously think family doctors are making a killing, eh? Whatever.

Why don't we focus on how to stop overutalization of medical equipment instead? Doctors order extra tests in a lot of cases because they want to protect themselves against lawsuits. In Hospitals, there are other incentives in play of course.

Ah the MRI scam. I was scammed myself.  Folks talk about the top one percent. One place that I know I am in the top one percent, is just telling doctors no. They all too often handle cross examination about as well as a deer in headlights. The thought of a single payer system suffuses me with angst, because then my leverage over them would be effectively zero. That would be very stressful to me.

[Sbane]

What do you mean by "providers"?

Doctors and hospitals.

And what type of doctors, specifically?

All of 'em, your friend especially.

Seriously though, just read the article.

Haha, ok. You seriously think family doctors are making a killing, eh? Whatever.

Why don't we focus on how to stop overutalization of medical equipment instead? Doctors order extra tests in a lot of cases because they want to protect themselves against lawsuits. In Hospitals, there are other incentives in play of course.

Ah the MRI scam. I was scammed myself.  Folks talk about the top one percent. One place that I know I am in the top one percent, is just telling doctors no. They all too handle cross examination about as well as a deer in headlights. The thought of a single payer system suffuses me with angst, because then my leverage over them would be effectively zero. That would be very stressful to me.

You can't think about yourself all the time. Most people would be better off if Doctors didn't have to cover their ass from lawsuits and didn't have incentives to overuse medical equipments.

[pbrower2a]

Gouging happens when special interests are so assumed to cause 'all blessings to flow' that they get blank checks. That is a horrible way in which to do business, one that allows power to overwhelm any market forces. Special interests ordinarily assert that they offer some 'dynamism' that requires the draining of resources from other activities so that those special interests can work their magic.

We have the world's most expensive medical system yet we get mediocre results on the whole and anything from excellent (best medical treatment that money can buy) to horrible (run out of money and get sent home to die).

Medicine is not a competitive business. We have an artificial shortage of medical professionals, monopolistic pricing of pharmaceuticals, and sweetheart deals between the government and the medical-industrial complex.