Okay, not quite. But yesterday I received a fax from Dr. Price's Congressional office, asking me as a physician to sign on as a "consultant" to the "Physician's Council for Responsible Reform". Because of my "invaluable experience", I've been invited to provide "input" to such luminaries as John Boehner and Eric Cantor.
Can you say astroturf?
Like other Republican members of Congress who are physicians, Tom Price is known for his adamant opposition to any meaningful health care reform. As an extremely affluent former orthopedic surgeon, our health care "system" worked just fine for him, thank you very much.
So Dr. Price is fronting this astroturf effort, trying to get other physicians to lend their names and perhaps a bit of "halo" to the fundamentally anti-reform agenda.
As the Physician Council's website proudly proclaims: "The purpose of the new NRCC Physicians’ Council for Responsible Reform is to ensure that health care reform actually improves – and not undermines – what is in fact the highest quality health care in the world".
Anybody here buy that? Anyone agree that America has "the highest quality health care in the world"?
Tell that to my future son in law. He recently spent two weeks in the hospital due to seizures resulting in muscle breakdown and kidney failure, all triggered by a previously undiagnosed brain tumor. He lost his job about 4 months earlier, and with it his health insurance. Shortly after discharge from the hospital he was handed a bill for $50,000. This pointedly does not include charges from the numerous physicians who saw him; and the first hospital treating him sent a separate bill for $7,000. The final total will likely be about $80,000, for someone who is unemployed with no savings.
Oh, and in his state, he is absolutely positively not eligible for Medicaid, no way no how. The only option for coverage is a state program costing $600 out of pocket per month, with a 12 month exclusion for all pre-existing conditions. Meaning none of his present medical problems will be covered.
Will that be cash, check or charge?
But remember, we have "the highest quality health care in the world".
Pray you don't get sick.
Needless to say, I demanded that Dr. Price's astroturf organization immediately remove my name from their list of "consultants". Angrily telling them off was the high point of my morning.