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In my opinion, the healthcare system in this country is currently on life support. The level of trust is lower than it’s been in at least 50 years and deservedly so. While many probably believe that the negative impact on the healthcare system’s reputation is based on the nation’s Covid response, I will endeavor to provide, from the perspective of a retired physician and patient, a roadmap that brings all of the elements of the healthcare system together to explain how the disastrous Covid response merely highlighted the rot, rather than being its cause. While I’m keenly aware of the forces outside the healthcare system that played important roles in this drama, for this article, I will stick with all things medical.
Dr. Kritz makes good points in the article. Thank you for posting it. I have additional thoughts on why this crisis will only get worse with time:
Health care is strained because too few young, smart people are choosing medicine as a career. The smart ones can make more money working in other careers.
Illegal immigrants are soaking up health care capacity. 7 million new illegal immigrants to America in 3 years are staining services.
Women are admitted to med school more than men for several years. Women drop out or reduce their hours worked after having children. Med schools are choosing to train women doctors who don't stay in the profession full-time for life instead of training men who do not leave medicine.
The population is aging and the old need more health care. We are woefully short of medical professionals needed to keep up with demand.
Americans are becoming sick at younger ages. Obesity, diabetes, and cancer in the young are now using the medical system at younger and younger age with serious diseases than previous generations.
Last edited by texan2yankee; 04-11-2024 at 06:39 PM..
Nothing is free. Healthcare providers have high overhead, heavy expenses for the services they provide to their patients ( ie, same utilities you pay, building, equipment, insurance-ever price malpractice insurance????, personnel salaries, costs for compliance with myriad federal, state and local regulations), and those do not come free to healthcare providers.
So who DO you think should pay for your healthcare?
Didn't read the article. Don't need to because based on personal experience, I know our health care system is screwed up, unfair, and unnecessarily expensive.
Dr. Kritz makes good points in the article. Thank you for posting it. I have additional thoughts on why this crisis will only get worse with time:
Health care is strained because too few young, smart people are choosing medicine as a career. The smart ones can make more money working in other careers.
Illegal immigrants are soaking up health care capacity. 7 million new illegal immigrants to America in 3 years are staining services.
Women are admitted to med school more than men for several years. Women drop out or reduce their hours worked after having children. Med schools are choosing to train women doctors who don't stay in the profession full-time for life instead of training men who do not leave medicine.
The population is aging and the old need more health care. We are woefully short of medical professionals needed to keep up with demand.
Americans are becoming sick at younger ages. Obesity, diabetes, and cancer in the young are now using the medical system at younger and younger age with serious diseases than previous generations.
As someone who has worked in health care for over 25 years and still do (occupational therapist), I would say the main reasons for the rot are corporate greed. These giant hospital conglomerates buy up every small practice so people don't have choices, they spend their money on appearances and private suites rather than patient care, and most of all, they cut staffing to the bone to increase profits. My job is nothing like it was when I graduated in the late '90's, patient care used to be a priority but now it's only about profit. Not just from the health care corporations but also private insurance companies like Medicare Advantage plans, that now dictate care when it used to be doctors dictating care.
It's depressing and stressful environment now, and most people I know in healthcare field talk their kids out of going into healthcare today.
As someone who has worked in health care for over 25 years and still do (occupational therapist), I would say the main reasons for the rot are corporate greed. These giant hospital conglomerates buy up every small practice so people don't have choices, they spend their money on appearances and private suites rather than patient care, and most of all, they cut staffing to the bone to increase profits. My job is nothing like it was when I graduated in the late '90's, patient care used to be a priority but now it's only about profit. Not just from the health care corporations but also private insurance companies like Medicare Advantage plans, that now dictate care when it used to be doctors dictating care.
It's depressing and stressful environment now, and most people I know talk their kids out of going into healthcare today.
This ^^.
When a relative was in the hospital, one of the frazzled nurses told me she had twice the number of patients to attend to than just a few years previously. Plus they are sicker patients in the beds because the others are moved on to rehab facilities ASAP. In comes a new group of ill patients, all needing major care. She was counting the days to retirement.
I think all TV ads and any other literature pushing Medicare Advantage need to have a clear and upfront statement that you are signing over your healthcare to an insurance company, which can delay or deny care. Your doctor does not have control. Several of our biggest hospitals in the state just dropped some of those plans as they were not receiving timely payments plus the hassles of dealing with denials for approval or payment.
Last edited by shamrock4; 04-12-2024 at 12:09 PM..
When a relative was in the hospital, one of the frazzled nurses told me she had twice the number of patients to attend to than just a few years previously. Plus they are sicker patients in the beds because the others are moved on to rehab facilities ASAP. In comes a new group of ill patients, all needing major care. She was counting the days to retirement.
I think all TV ads and any other literature pushing Medicare Advantage need to have a clear and upfront statement that you are signing over your healthcare to an insurance company, which can delay or deny care. Your doctor does not have control. Several of our biggest hospitals in the state just dropped some of those plans as they were not receiving timely payments plus the hassles of dealing with denials for approval or payment.
I completely agree. They deliberately call it Medicare part C rather than Advantage plan because they know most people don’t know Advantage plans are called part C. They say “If you only have Medicare parts A and B you’re missing out, because part C covers dental and vision” They make it sound like it’s something in addition to A and B, rather than in place of A and B. I’d wager most people who call don’t even realize they were switched from traditional Medicare to Advantage till they get sick and find out the hard way.
When my mother was in the 300 bed hospital near her ALF I tried for days to reach a social worker. She finally called me apologizing saying she was the only social worker! Meantime there were posters in the lobby with illustrations of their planned lobby re-do, complete with rocks and waterfalls! They’re spending millions on the lobby but only have one social worker for 300 beds.
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