About Me

In writing the "About Me" portion of this blog I thought about the purpose of the blog - namely, preventing the growth of Socialism & stopping the Death Of Democracy in the American Republic & returning her to the "liberty to abundance" stage of our history. One word descriptions of people's philosophies or purposes are quite often inadequate. I feel that I am "liberal" meaning that I am broad minded, independent, generous, hospitable, & magnanimous. Under these terms "liberal" is a perfectly good word that has been corrupted over the years to mean the person is a left-winger or as Mark Levin more accurately wrote in his book "Liberty & Tyranny" a "statist" - someone looking for government or state control of society. I am certainly not that & have dedicated the blog to fighting this. I believe that I find what I am when I consider whether or not I am a "conservative" & specifically when I ask what is it that I am trying to conserve? It is the libertarian principles that America was founded upon & originally followed. That is the Return To Excellence that this blog is named for & is all about.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

The Middle Class Was Made To Be Sacked & Looted

Thanks to one of the many doctors in our group who sent the article below along with the comment "this is a fantastic article - as usual, the only person getting the short end of the stick is the doctor. I do not know why we stand for this. I do not know why we are so uninformed. The taxpayers are once again abused." I think you get her point.

In reality highly motivated high energy elite statists have taken advantage of the unsuspecting complacent apathetic leisure-loving American middle class as long as I can remember - most recently by sacking & looting them (us) by just a few adjustments to accounting through the click of a mouse.

PHYSICIANS SAY GOVERNMENT 'CHARITY' IS A CASH COW FOR SPECIAL INTERESTS

By Alieta Eck, M.D.

Physicians are waking up to the fact that they have been used by self-serving politicians and insurers. Their licenses have been co-opted by those who have profited greatly. While physicians were busy studying hard, excelling on their exams and putting in endless hours of often thankless care in their residency training, the MBAs were dreaming up ways to siphon off the fruits of their labor.

In 1965, physicians were blitzed when the huge government programs were started in the name of charity. Instead of being an efficient way to care for the poor and lift them out of poverty, "charity care" has become synonymous with big government programs that are heavy on bureaucracy, crushing the taxpayer and downright cruel to the poor. Medicaid cardholders have difficulty finding a physician who can afford to provide care with the low payments, so the government responds by setting up venues that cost the taxpayer dearly.

Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) have been established-- each one handed a generous start-up grant of $650,000. They are given "enhanced Medicaid dollars," and free medical malpractice coverage, all ways to increase their revenues and decrease their costs. But a look at their Form 990s tell a story of profligate spending, of highly paid executives and well endowed bank accounts used for travel, "recruitment," and consultants. Sure, the poor are seen on a "sliding scale basis," but the return visits are frequent and the billing to the government relentless. One such clinic takes in $14 million in taxpayer funds and spends $160-280 per patient visit-- for charity care.

Patients are treated as commodities and campaign props for politicians "who buy the poor for silver." (Amos 8:6) and who do very well from the donations of those who establish these clinics. The taxpayer is hit from all sides. The practices of nearby physicians find they must work on an uneven playing field competing with institutions that exist because of their own tax dollars.

The perfect storm of an ailing economy, decreased government revenues, angry taxpayers and the clear exploitation of the poor by the corruption inherent in the Medicaid system is making the physicians wake up. They abandoned the Medicaid program a long time ago and instead have cared for the poor for free, giving real charity at their own expense.

So the doctors are asking, "Why should the taxpayers pay into the Medicaid system to the tune of $10 billion per year in NJ?" "Where is the money going, if physicians are not being paid?" While physicians were getting a total of $90 million in the NJ Medicaid system, the administrators of the Medicaid HMO's and FQHCs were reaping $500 million.

Now the physicians are demanding that the system be dismantled piece by piece, and are asking for volunteers and philanthropists to establish non-government free clinics through voluntary charitable donations. One such clinic was started in Red Bank, NJ, with a lovely building erected through the generosity of Jon Bon Jovi. Physicians are willing to donate their time-- as much as four hours a week, to care for the disadvantaged in their communities. No claim forms, no coding, no bills-- just care.

If the Volunteer Physicians Protection Act (VPPA) becomes law, doctors will receive state sponsored medical malpractice coverage for all of their other work, not just the charity. This would be a big "thank-you" that will only cost the taxpayer if an actual lawsuit is brought and prevails. Lawsuits will be rare, as is the case with the Federal Tort Claims Act that already covers work done in free clinics. And since medical school physicians and residents are already covered by the state, this program would just need to be expanded.

A free clinic in central New Jersey operates by the kindness of volunteers and the generosity of those who choose to donate to a worthy cause. Patients find that the kindness is palpable and they feel uplifted when they leave. The total cost per patient visit is $13. No taxpayer funds are used.

"Most of our twentieth-century schemes, based on having someone else take action, are proven failures. It's time to learn from the warm hearts and hard heads of earlier times."

Marvin Olasky, The Tragedy of American Compassion, c1992, p.233.

Every American needs to decide what role he might play in bringing health care to the poor. Volunteering a few hours per month in a non-government free clinic alongside doctors of every specialty would reap a world of benefit to the caregiver as well as the receiver.

2 comments:

  1. This doctor is right. Charity is supposed to come freely from the heart, not stolen from the pockets of the people. There was a time when there was no such thing as health insurance. Everyone had a family doctor who knew you and your family for a long time. Specialists were almost unheard of and only for very serious problems. You didn't need an appointment to go see the doctor, you just showed up at the office and waited your turn. If you were really sick, he came to you after he saw the patients in the office. The fee was reasonable and you paid in cash.

    We had no health insurance when I had my first 3 children. We worked out a payment plan so the delivery cost was covered by the time of the birth. Meantime we saved for the hospital cost. There were no credit cards so we were not indebted to anyone. I believe the introduction of credit cards and health insurance caused more harm than good. When you knew you had to pay for your medical costs., you were more careful about taking care of yourself. The same applies to credit cards. Somehow you don't think of plastic the same as real money.

    It's time for us to go back to cash and carry living. It's time to stop spending money we don't have and that goes double for our Government.

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  2. I believe the Medicare should stop funding for Graduate medical Education(residency). The doctors do make way more than any average american. They can pay for their own training. Why would the tax payer pay for them?

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