Email a Friend
Print Article
Congress Reverses Medicare Cuts
As predicted in a recent WebMD blog, Congress has voted to reverse a scheduled 10.6% cut in Medicare reimbursements. Moreover, instead of another planned cut of 5% in January 2009 there will actually be a 1.1% increase in Medicare payments. Click here to learn how Congress got itself into this mess in the first place.
So everybody can take a deep breath and relax for a little while. Now some doctors can get back to work.
Yes, I said back to work.
Due to the severe nature of the projected Medicare cuts (as well as its trickle-down effect on all other government and private health plans) some doctors closed their offices except for genuine emergencies. Dr. David Richardson is an Los Angeles ophthalmologist who took that extreme measure. No routine appointments - emergencies only. Was it really that extreme?
Simple business practices demand that revenues (reimbursements for services) must exceed the costs required to operate that practice. Did you know that over half of what doctors collect immediately goes towards paying overhead? The key word is collect. If you ever examined one of those computer-generated "Explanation of Benefits" from your health insurer (an oxymoron, they actually explain very little) you'll discover that there is an enormous gap between what the doctor legally bills and what insurance agrees to pay. It's not unusual for a doctor to perform a 45 minute procedure, bill $1100, and collect $307! Remember, half of that disappears with overhead, and nobody has paid any taxes yet!
So let me ask you, would you be upset if your physician restricted services, curtailed clinic hours, or barred Medicare beneficiaries all in the name of keeping the practice solvent? Think about it, then let's hear from you!
Related Topics:
So everybody can take a deep breath and relax for a little while. Now some doctors can get back to work.
Yes, I said back to work.
Due to the severe nature of the projected Medicare cuts (as well as its trickle-down effect on all other government and private health plans) some doctors closed their offices except for genuine emergencies. Dr. David Richardson is an Los Angeles ophthalmologist who took that extreme measure. No routine appointments - emergencies only. Was it really that extreme?
Simple business practices demand that revenues (reimbursements for services) must exceed the costs required to operate that practice. Did you know that over half of what doctors collect immediately goes towards paying overhead? The key word is collect. If you ever examined one of those computer-generated "Explanation of Benefits" from your health insurer (an oxymoron, they actually explain very little) you'll discover that there is an enormous gap between what the doctor legally bills and what insurance agrees to pay. It's not unusual for a doctor to perform a 45 minute procedure, bill $1100, and collect $307! Remember, half of that disappears with overhead, and nobody has paid any taxes yet!
So let me ask you, would you be upset if your physician restricted services, curtailed clinic hours, or barred Medicare beneficiaries all in the name of keeping the practice solvent? Think about it, then let's hear from you!
Related Topics:
- Focus on an Issue: Health Insurance for Retirees
- Medicare Advantage: Private Health Insurance Through Medicare
