Last week I heard that unemployment benefits had been extended, which is good for the vast number of unemployed Americans. However, the announcement that a Medicare reduction of 22 percent had been postponed until April was never mentioned.
This large reduction in Medicare payments to physicians was to take place March 1. Now, to those who do not work in a physician’s office it doesn’t sound like anything you would be interested in. Do you know that physicians today receive approximately 25 cents (I’m being generous) on the dollar to see Medicare patients? Now they want to reduce the amount paid to the provider by another 22 percent. That would leave physicians 19 cents on the dollar.
I know from experience that it costs much more than 19 cents on the dollar to see a patient. Maybe physicians should ask all their vendors to take 19 cents on the dollar every time they have to buy supplies or pay monthly expenses. What a travesty.
All Americans should be worried about access to medical care. How can physicians continue seeing Medicare patients without being paid enough to run their practice? I am not even talking a profit. Every American should write to their representatives demanding they start spending Medicare dollars on physicians who provide care. Does 19 cents on the dollar sound reasonable to you? Ask your representative to give you a breakdown on where the Medicare dollars go. Then figure out how much money you contributed during your working years or are still contributing. Ask them if they will take a mandatory cut in pay to 19 cents on the dollar to be a congressman or senator.
Would you work for 19 cents on the dollar? Not many Americans would. Why does the administration of Medicare feel physicians should?
Bobbie Pennington
Mill Creek
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