Will Obama-care drive doctors out?

By Robert Amoroso

By all accounts, it seems that we’re on the verge of passing Obama-care, and I suspect that once this bill is passed there will be many challenges as to the constitutionality of this massive entitlement, both on the process as to how it was achieved, and in the actual  language of the bill itself.

Whether the bill is constitutional or not, I suspect it will be a matter for the courts to decipher. Obviously there will be many state challenges to Obama-care, and I suspect there will also be individual challenges from ordinary citizens challenging this administration’s right to mandate healthcare coverage.

As I’ve outlined in previous articles, if the federal government can force its citizen’s to purchase a product or service such as healthcare, then why not force them to buy, say a membership to a health facility, or a gym? Obviously this is a civil rights issue that strikes at the very essence of our civil liberties.

However, no other group is more at risk then our doctors, in a recent survey which appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine in which 30% of primary-care physicians interviewed stated that they would leave the medical profession if Obama-care became law, and in the latest Wall Street Journal poll 48% of physicians interviewed opposed the bill, while only 36% approved.

The likelihood of a mass exodus of doctors leaving the medical profession seems very real, when one considers that reimbursements under this bill, for both Medicaid and Medicare may be drastically cut, and does nothing to bring down malpractice insurance..

Even if these numbers aren’t exactly accurate, imagine if you will for a moment, that a substantial  number of doctors decide to leave the medical profession while an additional 30-45 million more Americans are added onto the system.

If these projections prove to be true then we’re headed for a catastrophic situation of monumental prepositions, and nowhere in this healthcare reform package or this administration, has anyone taken the time to analyze or do a feasibility study on the impact to our healthcare industry if  the likelihood of this (or something similar) happening.

Obviously the system would quickly be overwhelmed, and I would imagine that in order to avoid a total collapse (sounds familiar) drastic measures would need to be taken. And of course we all know by now, that under this administration…You Never Want a Serious Crises to go to Waste”……thus temporary (get it), rationed healthcare would be the order of the day.

Joseph,

First let me thank you for your comments, now for some factual points, first no one disputes that healthcare should be reformed, everyone agrees that something should be done to reform the system, however “Obama-care” certainly isn’t it!

Fact number two, 83% of Americans have health insurance, and most are satisfied with their coverage, Overall, the profit margin for health insurance companies was a modest 3.4 percent over the past year, according to data provided by Morningstar. That ranks 87th out of 215 industries. and slightly above the median of 2.2 percent.

As for irresponsible people, I totality agree this administration should never have bailed out the banking industry, the automakers and homeowners who purchased homes they couldn’t afford.

However the government “my friend” cannot mandate, force or intimidate anyone to buy a product or service they don’t want, it’s unconstitutional…GET IT!

The AMA -- which reportedly stated to Congress that it opposed "a public health insurance option" before backtracking from that position -- represents only about 29% of licensed U.S. doctors, according to the AMA's own figures.

Amo

Good morning Thomas,

Thanks for responding and I stand corrected, you’re right on the number of physicians in the AMA. I agree, the scoring by the CBO is inaccurate because they can only score the information given by the administration. The so called “doctor fix”, that I believe was in the original bill has been taken out in order to bring the numbers down, and was put on hold, it’ll be resubmitted AFTER this bill is passed…and  will bring this healthcare bill, after all the games and the slight-of-hand, to about two and a half trillion dollars.

Obviously many states can’t afford this healthcare reform package, and I believe just like the state Mass, that actually has government controlled healthcare and is now being subsidized by the federal government just to stay afloat.

Amo