Al,
As we all know and are extremely appreciative of all your leadership and hard work as it relates to all this CCHITT-CCHITT, I still really want to put together some sort of larger group. One that talks to all the issues that small and solo practices face and how we are getting the healthcare that we deserve because it is the healthcare that we have legislated via the Congress, the states, the FTC and CMS. We now have crumby, expensive, larger and larger group factories that perform 7 1/2 minute drive by visits because that is the only way to make office visits and primary care pay. All while big pharma, the carriers and the large supply manufacturers are rolling in green.
I still really want to hit my favorite topics like we have discussed here over the past few months, CCHITT and other gov't invasions of privacy included, but we do not have an insider to help us get estblished so as to be able to "get thru" the road blocks and other interferance to that inside track. I feel that your cause (our cause obviously) would be extremely well served if it were to be incorporated into some larger regional and national group that we might form to rebel against the entrenched supposed representitives of providers such as the AMA's, AAFP's APA's and the like.
Now I totally understand and respect your aquaintances need to protect herself and her family, goodness knows how ugly that must have been. Send her all our best for taking such risks and abuse for all of us, she must be a real patriot and we all own her a debt of graditude. But might there be a way to have her simply turn you on to other friendly and receptive folks who could take it from there??? That's sort of how I started this business for Nancy. One or two friends gave me a few names and numbers of other intelligent folks who could be helpful, and with there stamp of approval ("Hi so and so told me to reach out to you...") a number of doors opened up from there, and now the rest is history.
My biggest pet peeve besides CCHITT and it's Orwellian spy portal, is that we all talk about what we value like quality care, but then we have the lowest RVU's assigned to the OV's that are where the care is truly done. We would not need any P4 if we simply paid hard working docs what they need and deserve for the disrespected, underpaid office visit where most of the care goes down. Henry Ford has been speeding up the assembly line all these years, and now he has the gall to turn around and wonder where the quality has gone??? Screw that. It's likw all this talk about family values while those same moron politicos support a ton of policies that hurt the average person everyday... What values for crying out loud???
It is time for people to put their money where their mouths are. People tend to pay for what they value and they tend to not pay for what they don't.... It's time for America and it's gov't to, "piss or get off the pot", as my dad would say. We'll pay some Marine like specialist thousands of dollars to perform one procedure, but we can't seem to find the money or the will to pay a PCP a living wage for managing his sick old mother or to care for your new born kid. Medicare fee schedule for an est pt level 4 in upstate NY is $86 and change. And that was a blessing from the sky as it wasn't even $80 until 2007!!! Now that is pure horseCCHITT. And there are carriers who are trying to get away with not even paying Medicare fee schedule while they roll around in our money like pigs in a pen.
Anyway, yes let's keep you friend safe and secure. But if she could just point us in the right direction to others who could assist us, with that combined with a banner of our own to give us an air of legitimacy, I think we just might stand a fighting chance....
Bert, Gang are you listening??? Are you ready for the fight of your lives??? "gadeszuks Martha, I've been drafted!!!"
Good Night and Good Luck,
Paul
