What Americans fail to realize is that the insurance industry is
operating a health monopoly scheme which has gamed out the maximum
benefit for the industry while leaving the impecunious third of the
population in the lurch. Nice work if you can get it but also
naturally unstable.
This item shows us just how unstable it is. Now imagine a doctor
setting this up on a cooperative clinic basis in which any surplus is
paid back to the supporting members or invested in better equipment.
My more serious point is that the competition is so overpriced that
such a clinic is a certain winner.
This will be the first crack and it is just so obvious, that it will
be quickly repeated particularly since the present system is
demanding universality with an impossible protocol. This may not be
the whole solution but it is a clear start. We can be optimistic.
After all, the only folks that need to be involved in your health is
your doctor and yourself with the government providing a guarantee at
best.
DOCTORS DUMP HEALTH
INSURANCE PLANS, CHARGE PATIENTS LESS
6/15/2013
WICHITA, Kan., June 14
(UPI)
A Kansas physician says he makes the same income and offers better quality care to his patients after he dumped all health insurance companies.
Thirty-two-year old family physician Doug Nunamaker of Wichita, Kan., said after five years of dealing with the red tape of health insurance companies and the high overhead for the staff he hired just to deal with paperwork, he switched to a system of charging his patients a monthly fee plus the price of an office visit or test, CNN/Money reported.
For example, under Nunamaker's membership plan -- also known as "concierge" medicine or "direct primary care" practices -- each patient pays a flat monthly fee to have unlimited access to the doctors and any medical service they can provide in the practice, such as stitches or an EKG.
For adults up to age 44, Nunamaker charges $50 a month, pediatric services are $10 a month, and for adults age 44 and older it costs $100 a month. Although Nunamaker calls the practice "cash-only," he accepts credit and debit cards for the fees and services.
Nunamaker and his partner negotiated deals for services outside the office. A cholesterol test costs the patient for $3, versus the $90 or more billed to insurance companies; an MRI can cost $400, compared with $2,000 or more billed to insurance companies.
The practice encourages patients and families to also carry some type of high-deductible health insurance plan in case of an emergency or serious illness requiring hospitalization, Nunamaker said.
Nunamaker said his annual salary is around $200,000, and he gets to spend more time with patients providing better care because he is not watching the clock and he gets to spend more time with this family.
Most of Nunamaker's clients are self-employed, small business owners, or small companies that found the monthly fee and the cost of the high-deductible plan was a cheaper option, CNN/Money reported.
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