There are so many current events that concern me that it is difficult to choose just one. I guess the issue that I find myself following most consistently in the news is that of healthcare reform. I’m aware that this is a highly controversial subject, so I’ll try to be considerate of outside views in this blog.
As you may know from previous posts, I work at a doctor’s office. Health insurance is something that I deal with on a daily basis and I see how politics affects everyday people, the patients that we treat in a myriad of ways.
Right now the bureaucracy is complex and confusing. Patients often don’t understand their coverage or really what they’re paying for. That being said, those on government programs such as Medicare and Medicaid struggle to get services covered. Every charge is regulated; providers are required to devote extra resources to billing services differently and obtaining approval for services that take extra amounts of time that stall treatment. Some doctors choose to provide for their patients in the same way that they would any other, for the best quality that they can. This results in one of two things; patients are held fiscally responsible for services or the doctors choose to write off charges and don’t get paid.
Something needs to change with healthcare. That being said, I do not personally believe that the government should keep slapping private industry with regulations that inhibit their ability to operate as they wish. I also do not support completely government run health care as the federal programs have just as many problems as private insurance companies.
Either way the legislation goes, it makes me nervous.
Have you seen any changes at the doctor's office due to the new health care law? I am curious as to how this affects doctor's day to day operations.
ReplyDeleteNot much has changed.... yet. I'd say that the largest issue that has come up is the mandate that ALL insurance companies will cover yearly physicals completely, with no copay.
ReplyDeleteOften, to reduce the number of times that a patient has to come into the office, the doctor will do the physical at the same time as an office visit. We have to bill them separately, and because the patient doesn't pay the copay for their physical visit, We're often left with that charge to bill them when the claims come back from the insurance companies.
It creates a mess because patients get angry, they are confused as to why they owe us money from that date of service if they were in for their physical. It's hard to explain to a patient that they owe us money when they insist that they don't.
Besides that, the changes are mostly on how to code charges for the companies. The big changes will come into effect if the bill ever gets through the massive process and is actually implemented.
I agree with you. I too do not want to see a government run health care system. I do not want to be like France, lol.
ReplyDelete