"Too many good docs are gettin' outta bidness!"

[Bluebear]

The latest Bushism is so telling, so hilarious that I am using it for my sig for a bit. But here's a question. In the zeal to denounce "trial lawyers" and shield doctors and drug manufacturers from lawsuits, I wonder how MANY "good docs" are gettin' outta bidness?

How many doctors really left the field last year because of lawsuits? What did they become, furniture salesmen? Do tell, George, what is the statistic?

[NC_Nurse]

1. I would think that just as many

are leaving because insurance companies and HMO's have more say about patient care than they do.
Medicine is a frustrating job in MANY ways these days, not just from litigation...

[Bluebear]

4. Indeed and RN's are the most overworked

Too many patients per shift, long hours, underpaid, and underrecognized for the level of expertise and care they give. They know the patient better than the docs.

[LunaC]

13. Nurses run circles around docs

and often bail their asses out yet they get no thanks whatsoever.

I despise docs as much as Bush*!

[PeteC]

2. This doc?

-snip

"I wasn't sure how to stop him or how he would react if I said, ‘Should you be doing this to me?’ so I let it go," said one of the former patients, who asked not to be identified.

She went to Hagenmeyer's Warsaw clinic for a school physical when she was 16. She says she was shocked when he asked her about sex and touched her in ways she considered inappropriate.

"He was checking my heart and went underneath my dress, underneath my bra and touching my breast," she said, "and then when he did the stomach check he went further down than my stomach, touching my pubic bone and further down."

Several others also accused Hagenmeyer of inappropriate touching. A jury found him guilty of molesting and sexual misconduct, but his conviction was overturned because of a trial court error. Still, state regulators suspended his license, saying his conduct was lewd and immoral.

<http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=1003658&nav=DqSHCFtd>

[hlthe2b]

8. Wyoming is notoriously lax in reprimanding physicians who

violate ethics or worse. But, the last (and only to my knowledge)physician to lose his license was still incarcerated last time I checked after raping his patients. While hopefully quite rare, it does happen and Bush* really stepped in it with this ridiculous statement.

[miss_kitty]

3. it's not only lawsuits

other factors include the drying up of money for services

i used to never go to the doctor, but a catastrophic illness dictates i go a lot now. the last time i has a check up from my (public health) doctor, he was typing while i was talking? why? they don't have the $$$ for transcription anymore...

[punpirate]

5. It's not that they stop practicing...

... rather it's a case of going to other specialties or restricting their practices. Some obstetrics doctors will no longer do Caesareans because it reduces their malpractice insurance rates. Some OB/GYN doctors have gone into family practice, also to reduce insurance rates.

The problem comes back not to lawsuits, but to the games the insurers are playing with the rates.

And, as some commentators, such as Jim Moore, have mentioned, tort reform is a wonderful way to reduce the income of trial lawyers, making it much less likely that they can give political contributions to their party of choice, the Democrats.

Cheers.

[hlthe2b]

6. It really is a problem, especially in rural areas. OBBYN's medical

malpractice rates have gotten so high many are leaving, but more importantly, Family Practitioners are also refusing to perform even routine deliveries....

Yes, there is truth behind it, but it is not the law suits per se, but the malpractice premiums. Some states have tried to get creative with some success by subsidizing the portion of malpractice premiums attributed to obstetrics and providing more specialty oversight via telemedicine in more rural settings (i.e., a board certified OBGYN reviews women's records with the primary care physician and provides guidance, thereby offsetting some of the issues which could lead to lawsuits).

As with much that the Repugs spew, there is a granule of truth that they then expand/exploit to a ridiculous degree.

[cheshire]

7. Carville in his books said Doctors create law suits, and we need to

keep them in check like they try to do teachers.

[spooky3]

9. Olbermann showed this clip, then his own facial reactions were priceless!

[Sparkly]

10. How long before they stop allowing cameras at his campaign stops?

Soon the RNC will tape and edit footage and release only what they want to. It's dangerous for people to hear the Chimp when he speaks too long, even when he's scripted.

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

11. No different from his lie in the same speech that he would

increase monies for Pell Grants. My ass. Pell Grant money went DOWN under bush.

I ain't a-buyin' what he's a-sellin'. THAT'S what the American people need to stand up and say.

And hopefully, they'll say it on Nov. 2.

[LunaC]

12. "Too many good docs are gettin' outta bidness!"

Because too many BAD ones are in the System and nobody takes a stand to weed them out.

That's one of the FIRST places you want to start in reforming the health care industry, NOT tort reform.

[Bouregat]

14. My solution? Doctors who accepted no insurance & who couldn't be sued

You would have to sign a waiver denying all right to sue. The doctor would charge what the treatment costs, without a bunch of unnecessary tests to cover his butt from lawsuits......and without the temptation to inflate his price because the insurance pays for it.
The result would be something that seems to correlate with what treatments SHOULD cost...strep test 25 bucks instead of $225. 3 stitiches in the chin..$45 instead of $500. Overnight stay in a hospital..$200 instead of #2100....
The doctor is evaluated an an-Ebay type rating system. If he fucks up, EVERYBODY knows it. No lawsuits, coz you knew the risks going in-- but his ass is out of business. If he's great, people get excellent care for a reasonable price.
Another by product is the eradication of MOUNTAINS of paperwork, mulitiple confusing convoluted billings
Will it ever happen? No way in hell. Too damn many people have their hands out wanting a cut under the current screwed-up system.