The latest issue of Medical Tourism Magazine is devoted to in-bound and domestic medical tourism while HealthNews.com touts medical tourism as a solution to the health care crisis..
At the same time, proposed cuts to Medicare reimbursement schedules for physicians are predicted to further impact health care access for seniors. (Before you start blaming the doctors – remember that the majority of health care dollars – including medicare spending is tied up in the bureaucratic paperwork shuffle back and forth from doctors and government or third-party payers.. Not to mention all the uncollectable fees from uninsured and underinsured patients. The medicare reimbursement system is so convoluted that even simple procedures and office visits become an incomprehensible billing mess.. Right now, I think quite a few doctors would look fondly back on the days of bartering a chicken, eggs or a homemade pie for services..)
This new proposal is viewed as a solution to the previous proposed cut of 29.5% which is set to take effect on January 1, 2012. Instead – they propose a reimbursement rate freeze for the next TEN years (for primary care, while cutting reimbursement for specialists by almost six percent per year for the next three years..) Either plan – is bad news as we consider the out-of-control health care inflation..
Of course, the real solution is as unpalatable as fixing the tax code.. Streamlining – or simplifying the process is the obvious solution until we remember that this grossly bloated, unwieldly and inefficient system employs hundreds of thousands of people… (Just like the IRS).. And its political suicide to suggest cutting out the real source of waste in the middle of next great depression.. Instead of eliminating these massive bureaucracies – we’ll end up with some sort of New ‘New Deal’ – with further mortgaging and hemorrhaging of our children’s economic futures.. Doctors aren’t happy, patients aren’t happy..
Is it any wonder that we have to look outside the United States for solutions to our medical crisis?
And Finally, this article in a local paper demonstrates that not all hospitals are equal in quality and care. In this story – a family complains about the care their mother received after developing a sternal infection following bypass surgery. Sternal infections such as mediastinitis can be very serious – and are one of the outcome measures rated and reported as part of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) international database. This is why potential medical travellers should use caution and research destinations (using the Hidden Gem series or similar investigative medical writing) and facilities prior to arranging for surgical care (domestic or overseas.)
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