Health Care-AARP Has It Wrong Part 3

AARP has it wrong and NARP-National Association of Retired People has it right. Why does AARP think a government take over of health care could possibly be good for seniors? The system will be over loaded with patients resulting in a shortage of doctors.

Based on the governments' numbers (which I do not believe) over 45 million people will be added to the health care system. That will mean that the present number of doctors and hospitals will immediately be overloaded with patients. I ask the question to AARP…how will that be good for seniors? That sounds like someone including seniors will have to take a cut in the medical services and wait longer to get care.

If we do not immediately come up with another 200,000, doctors there will be shortages in health care providers. To make things worse 45% of all doctors say they will retire or just quit if this legislation passes. If the government can figure out a way to come up with more doctors, they will have to come from foreign countries with lower education standards than we have here in the USA. Many patients could end up receiving a much lower quality of health care. Ask AARP how would that be better for seniors?

AARP makes millions of dollars by selling health insurance. I ask the question…could AARP be thinking that somehow if the government takes over health care they will benefit by selling more health insurance? So far, I have not heard the government explain one advantage to seniors for the government to run health care. So again, I ask…why is AARP for the government plan especially when we don't know exactly what the plan is going to be?

The government is discussing cutting the amount doctors and hospitals will be paid. Politicians say they want to pay the doctors not for the service they perform but for patient health results. This kind of statement comes from politicians that have never been in business or ever run a business in their entire life. Obviously, someone making that kind of statement no matter what his or her position in government may be just does not understand the situation.

When you put a rebuilt engine or transmission in a car, it may work out just fine and occasionally it does not. When you do open heart surgery or remove a cancer sometimes, it works out just fine and sometimes it does not. Every case is different with each patient…very seldom are all things the same. Some times the doctor has to run many test on a patient to understand what is wrong. I know a man that had to have four of the same test run to discover that he needed bypass surgery.

My own wife had several scans on her back that found nothing yet my wife had back pain so bad she could hardly walk. After several long discussions with the doctor, he sent us to another hospital that had a more sophisticated scanning machine that found the nerve problem in her back. The neurosurgeon operated and now she walks just fine. With a government run health care system she might not have been able to run enough tests to receive the right treatment.

Doctors and hospitals have a certain amount of business operating overhead no matter what the government thinks. Right now about 8% of the total cost of treatment for Medicare and Medicaid patients comes out of the pocket of the doctors and hospitals. The politicians want to put the entire system on this kind of pricing. Some hospitals and doctors will have to go out of business and that will not be good for seniors.

My wife's doctor said she would stop practicing medicine if they cut allowable charges back too much. I have heard that as many as twenty percent of all doctors feel the same way. As a result of politicians making pricing decisions instead of the free market setting pricing we might have a giant shortage of doctors in the near future. Changing the way doctors are paid is not the answer to cutting health care costs and having government bureaucrats make decisions is even worse.

Many seniors (around 22%) have what is called Medicare Advantage supplemental insurance. The President has indicated he plans to cut $180 billion out of that program to save money. Lets' ask AARP…how is that going to be good for seniors. If those cuts go into effect, the doctor will be paid less and not want to see seniors or seniors will receive less care. Possibly that program will ultimately be dropped all together. Either way it is not good for seniors. The bottom line to all of this government involvement in health care will result in less care for seniors. Why is AARP not on your side? NARP is not tied to any union or political party and truly understands why seniors are worried.


Carl Wheeler ~ Author and Publisher for Six Saturdays a Week, A web site dedicated to the improvement of the quality of life as we age.
"http://www.sixsaturdaysaweek.com"