(Guest hosting for eeff; who generously allowed me to offer up a few thoughts)
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This is just a short personal story of a single visit for some laser eye surgery this week; and how crazy our world is with our current system.
I go to a very large opthalmologist group (OpthGrp, for short) here in CT. With challenges to my ever increasing glaucoma; I needed a laser treatment to help reduce the pressure---nothing that serious---people have bigger problems.
So I arrive @ 9AM for my appointment; and leave shortly after noontime---over THREE hours at the office. After 30 minutes, I had my first 5 minute exam for pressure reading & dilation/prep.
NINETY minutes later, I was called for the laser shot----5 minutes!!
I then sat for 45 minutes for a 3-5 minutes quick pressure check to make sure I was OK.
Fortunately, for me---I had insurance, and thus paid only my Co-pay---the bill will be somewhere in the neighborhood of $1500.-----approximately $100 @ minute for each bit of actual medical care!! (BTW, this was for only one eye)
This OpthGrp is very large---has 11 doctors, and a huge staff and building. No patients there were younger than 45-50.....and it was packed.
Essentially, we were treated like cattle---load them in; move them along---keep it going....
Were it a somewhat more routine a visit, I would have bailed out---but not this time....
Our system is broken---only the large groups can handle the ever increasing load; and the small doctors go where the money is. The smaller doctors can't afford the big buildings or the extra special equipment to compete; so they just buy into the bigger groups----and reap the rewards (of $$$). True patient care often goes out the window.
There are no simple answers to this--a single payer system might reduce costs, and help with those numbers; but how do we get past the huge groups that seem to take over; much like big banks have gotten bigger by buying up the small guy?
Unfortunately, this is just one small slice of our broken system---it has gone from something like a $75 billion industry in 1970 to a $2.6 TRILLION industry today!! (And projected to $4.3 trillion in 6 years)
• In 1970, U.S. health care spending was about $75
billion, or $356 per resident, and accounted for
7.2% of GDP.
• Health care spending has risen about 2.4
percentage points faster than GDP since 1970.
• CMS projects that by 2018, health care spending
will be over $4.3 trillion, or $13,100 per resident,
and account for 20.3% of GDP.
http://www.kff.org/...
With money like that floating around----why wouldn't groups just ignore true patient care; and just "move 'em in, and move 'em out"???
And, because, it is essentially a closed system (locked in to who your insurance plan pays) there are limited alternatives.
I'm sure each of you could offer up worse examples; feel free to do so....
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Have a great day, everyone; and at least help yourself with annual physical check-ups----including your eyes!!!