AMA, is this all you can do? | Glorfindel of Gondolin | 3.8.05
…I wonder why more physicians aren’t embarrassed. I suspect many of them just aren’t educated enough about either issue to notice the AMAs abdication of responsibility. But there are plenty of others, I suspect, for whom the AMA’s short-sighted bawling for more money is just what the doctor ordered. They see no problem with the AMA as just another lobbyist, especially when it lobbies for them. …
Physicians like to complain that the medical profession’s traditional perogative to police itself has been eroded. If the AMA continues to act like the American Used-Car Dealers’ Association, this erosion will likely continue.
Patients’ActionNetwork | AMA | 3.05
Medical Liability Reform Talking Points
- Health care is a fundamental right and should be available to all Americans. However, many states are losing their doctors because of out-of-control medical liability insurance rates.
- Overzealous personal-injury attorneys put their pocketbooks before patients, causing medical liability rates to rise to astronomical levels.
- Physicians simply can’t afford the insurance it takes to continue practicing medicine. In fact, many emergency rooms and trauma units are shutting down because there aren’t enough physicians to staff them.
- Personal-injury attorneys and their bank accounts should not come before people who need medical care.
- As my congressional representative, you can stop this trend by passing medical liability reform legislation.
Medicare Reform Talking Points
- Low Medicare reimbursement is one of the most serious issues facing seniors. Congress must act now and fix the Medicare reimbursement system to avoid a physician access crisis.
- Medicare has announced that it will cut what it reimburses doctors for providing care to seniors by about 5% per year for seven years, beginning in 2006. This amounts to a 31% cut from 2006 to 2013.
- Recent and projected Medicare payment cuts must be reversed to ensure that our nation’s seniors receive the quality health care they deserve.
- As more Americans reach the age of Medicare eligibility, Congress must not make it more difficult for them to find a doctor to serve their needs.
Glorfindel nailed this real good—the wisdom of the Ñoldor. The AMA lost me here. Good spinning (entwining) of the issues, using Medicare reform to provide traction for liability reform. I’ll take great professional umbrage with this nonsense, “In fact, many emergency rooms and trauma units are shutting down because there aren’t enough physicians to staff them.” Hospital closures are a very complex issues, every special interest believes they [all] close because of their role in healthcare.