Health law impacts primary care doc shortage

http://news.yahoo.com/newly-insured-struggle-primary-physicians-155516875.html;_ylt=AwrBEiHu_4RUDRoAJR7QtDMD

A survey this year by The Physicians Foundation found that 81 percent of doctors describe themselves as either over-extended or at full capacity, and 44 percent said they planned to cut back on the number of patients they see, retire, work part-time or close their practice to new patients.



At the same time, insurance companies have routinely limited the number of doctors and providers on their plans as a way to cut costs. The result has further restricted some patients' ability to get appointments quickly.
One purpose of the new health law was connecting patients, many of whom never had insurance before, with primary care doctors to prevent them from landing in the emergency room when they are sicker and their care is more expensive. Yet nearly 1 in 5 Americans lives in a region designated as having a shortage of primary care physicians, and the number of doctors entering the field isn't expected to keep pace with demand.

Simple solution. One that has been proven to work. Government offers to pay back student loans for each year a doctor works in a high priority community with different accelerations of pay back based on need. This is not rocket science. We need to be investing in new doctors and not have the monopoly of the AMA which is the union dictating admissions into medical schools. Double the loans to GP and double the admissions. It sure beats the hell out of getting folks from other countries which cannot speak English. The difference between an A+ student and a B+ student is a false benchmark. A doctor Speaking and understanding your patients concern far outweigh the union rules.

More bullshit from Teo. As if all these people who formerly went to the ER and saw a Dr. are now going to go berserk and use up all the Dr's. LOL!

I have found quality doctors are very restrictive on the new patients they see. I have seen this for twenty years. The less successful Docs take new patients. I was lucky to get my primary doc. I had to wait six months, and now he does not take new patients. My wife got in because she is a spouse. I think it is a quality of life issue also for some of the docs. The idea of going through life working sixty hour weeks is not a lot of fun. However, make it more attractive and it becomes simple supply and demand.

From the Nov. 20 INWEEKLY...winners & losers:

Sacred Heart Hospital & Santa Rosa Medical Center

Florida's Low-Income Pool Program, which helps non-profit hospitals serve low income uninsured patients, is scheduled to end June 30, 2015. Sacred Heart will lose annually $5,268, 219 and Santa Rosa Medical $3,582,202. The loss was supposed to be offset by the expansion of the Medicaid criteria, but Florida lawmakers have refused to do it.

Free ain't cheap comrade.

Floridatexan wrote:
From the Nov. 20 INWEEKLY...winners & losers:

Sacred Heart Hospital & Santa Rosa Medical Center

Florida's Low-Income Pool Program, which helps non-profit hospitals serve low income uninsured patients, is scheduled to end June 30, 2015.  Sacred Heart will lose annually $5,268, 219 and Santa Rosa Medical $3,582,202.  The loss was supposed to be offset by the expansion of the Medicaid criteria, but Florida lawmakers have refused to do it.

It was on the news last that the Medicaid expansion is back on the table in Florida, seems hospitals and doctor's are pushing the state for it.