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Demise of American Medicine During my tenure as the director of the Orange County Medical Association, the dominating issue was to stop government encroachment into the medical care system. Like Bermuda grass invading a lawn, its spread was relentless. The Register’s Mark Landsbaum, Jan. 15, 2012 article “Bad Medicine for California” identifies the absurdity of a legislative proposal by Sen. Mark Leno, D, San Francisco, SB810, a proposal for a state universal health care program. What is he thinking? What are his motivations? California has nearly $80 billion in bond debt and about $60 billion in unfunded pension obligations. The Gross National Debt is $15 Trillion, $211 Billion? The numbers are more impacting when written, rather than just shown numerically. The medical care system has faced mandated change as a result of political obfuscation. Medical care is what you have accepted to be known as health care formerly provided by physicians, known today as providers. Key drivers of these alterations are government intrusion, managed care and an unfettered tort liability system. Medicine has now become a mass production service. Medical insurance is a risk-rated program functioning upon actuarially forecasted data. Government-initiated managed care accelerated the demise of a personalized, caring system, in a wanton effort for cost control. On the horizon is the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Obama just gave $300 million to the Agency for Health-care Quality and Research, yet another bureaucratic entity, to pursue "academic detailing.” See the O.C. Register, Jan. 12, 2012, pg. 8. This is government duplicity of meaningless programs at taxpayer expense. In 1972, Social Security was amended to provide for "Professional Standards Review Organizations," an organization which was to monitor health care services. It was to assure that services provided are medically necessary, meet professional standards, and are most economic medically appropriate. Academic detailing--Here we go again! Twenty-six states’ numerous business and social representatives have sued to block the implementation of Obamacare. California is fully cooperating. The O.C. Register on 1/19/ 2012 quotes Nancy Ann DeParle, deputy chief of staff as saying “No matter where you live, on Jan.1, 2014, an exchange (new health insurance market) will be up and running.” It doesn’t matter what the people want. This is a nasty bureaucratic attitude. The Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) has initiated a program for high-risk patients. States have the option for Federal management (control) or state level. California sponsors the Major Risk Medical Insurance Program (MRMIP). Under Federal subsidy, (our money), it offers In January 2012, the Washington Post reported that the insurance pools saw anemic enrollment, a new worry: The high-risk pools attracted such expensive patients that nearly a quarter are running short on cash. California has asked the federal government twice for more money. This is just another political move to garnish federal dollars. Our nation is at horrendous financial risk. To turn over control of our medical care system to the Federal government is simply absurd. It is ludicrous. We are all fed up with politics. One party may say good morning and the other will respond why. We don’t have time nor is there value in playing a blame game. Washington is out of control and we share in the responsibility. Write your legislative representatives and vote in November for the legislative representatives that will pave the way for restoration of our country. John Rette |
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