Allow me to tell a story...
Back in the 1950's, my Dad was a doctor in Tucson. This was way before Medicare, and even health insurance was a fairly novel idea. Part of the deal was, the physicians in town all took turns rotating taking care of indigent patients at the County hospital, as I recall a month at a time. There was no reimbursement as I remember it... it was just expected. For certain, County was a pretty bleak place, but the care given was not significantly different from other hospitals, just less comfortable. I remember as a little boy riding with him in the car as he made his rounds.
Then Medicare and Medicaid came along. Now, the expectation on every physician's part became that they were going to get paid by every patient. And, in turn, every patient came to expect the same level of creature comfort whenever hospitalized, no matter their means.
I think the old system was cleaner. He was a doctor. He took care of some people for free. Some got "nicer" care than others, but no one really had to go without. And there was no other agency, governmental or insurer, that told him his services were only worth 25% of what he was accustomed to charging.
If I am going to work for free or next to free, I want it to be my choice. I want to feel good about it, not "taken."
