The Democrats’ Brilliant Idea for How to Stop Unnecessary Abortion Clinic Regulations

[politicat]

21. Actually, getting privileges isn't easy.

Hospitals give them out with the expectation of a certain number of admissions. Which is why cardiologists tend to have privileges, but dermatologists not so much. Dentists almost never have privileges because even sedation dentists rarely send anyone to the hospital. (And when they do, they're either calling 911 and letting the attending do the admitting, or telling the person to go to the ER, and letting the attending do the admitting.)

Most admitting physicians are on staff at the hospital.

Another aspect of privileges is proximity. The doc must live within a certain time radius of most hospitals to get privileges. My dentist would not be able to get privileges at the hospital 2 miles from her office, because she lives 25 miles away. It's not like professionals don't commute, too.

And then there's on call requirements -- some hospitals have them (which is why most of their admitters are on staff). If the hospital has a privilege contract with a non-employee physician, that hospital cannot expect zir to be on call without putting that person on payroll. (Most doctors are independent contractors, with fee for service through their patients; the hospitals don't pay them.)

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2013/07/24/why-admitting-privileges-laws-have-no-medical-benefit/