Each business owner alone would do the right thing. But they can't because they'd be at a disadvantage with respect to competitors. The solution is government regulation that makes them all do it, and takes it out of competition. That's how capitalism avoids a race to the bottom. That's what we need.
I rarely go to a Doc but i got sick with this terrible flu one year and had to go to the Doc, a PCP. At the time I did not had insurance. I got charged $75 dollars, for the first visit and then another $75 dollars for a second visit. One year after I got sick again so, I went to the same PCP. I now had insurance that has a deductible of $6000, so I knew I would be paying for all of it. So, between doctor appointment, vitals with nurse and front desk bureaucracy, I spent exactly 36 minutes. Later, for my surprise I got charged for that sick visit $280 dollars. I called the billing dept and asked that I wanted to be recharge at a lower price. Explained what happen the previous times. They responded that the Ins. set the prices. I said then I need a new PCP. They said that they have the lower prices in the area that would not be smart. I said you just told the Ins. set the prices, how come you have the lower prices? I know you can negotiate a better price. No answer. Doc hide behind Ins.
While I see that people blame the doctors. In reality, the real culprits are YOUR insurance companies. In reality, doctors base their fees and codes based on what the insurances allow and require. A physical exam is designed to diagnose sickness or medical conditions for which patients are not aware of. The doctor gets paid to find this information out. The doctor is also required to report this information to the insurance company. As consumers of medical care we feel like victims, yet in reality it is our own fault. We should and in fact are responsible for being aware of our insurance benefits and how insurance works. Our policies are so extensive that a doctor can spend more than a day explaining all of our benefits. For this reason, many offices have signs warning us to REMEMBER that we are responsible for being aware of our benefits. The doctor in this story did nothing wrong. In reality, we should be more concerned with insurance companies controlling our healthcare costs.
Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel has already said he will appeal the measure, and the issue may be settled by the right-wing Supreme Court which was elected to office with massive expenditures by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce and Wisconsin Club for Growth, both supporters of the bill.
Pages