Doctors
I have a good one. He's a chiropractor Osteopath. (I like D.O.'s -- less arrogant on the whole.) He has credentials in internal medicine. Every quarter he sends me to get blood drawn. Each fiscal year, some outfit sends me the first billings on my Medicare. Holy shit!
The inspiration for this came as I woke this morning – always a good sign around here. It was an ad for fish oil and they'd send a free cholesterol testing kit with a free starter pack of their pills. Contrast that to the reported $300 the local hospital charged for my blood test for the same.
Now the government is going to fix health care. Well, actually they are just going to throw money at it. That is what got us to this point.
First, health insurance is a regulated industry. This is done at both the state and federal level. The result is proof that corporations are a lot smarter than regulators. States built walls between themselves and other states. This stifled competition.
Second, Medicare and later Medicaid created payment structures with built in cost increases based on manufactured standards. Again, government and entrepreneurs met in the regulations and the battle went to the swift – government ain't that swift, once again. Billing department went from collection problems to regulatory managing. Hospital and practitioners were able to base charges on government allowances that were designed to increase. Over time that succeeded far more than any could anticipate.
Hospitals have greatly increased expensive technology. These technologies operate with profit center accounting. That gives them a whole collection of books to cook. OK, not cook but maximize for profit using inventive accounting practices. Not sure there is a difference but it all meets the standard our regulators have assigned.
The tendency today in our nanny state is to regulate. It is a process of futility when you think it can compete with or control accountants. Accountants do what they do best. Government does what it does worst.
ADDENDUM:
No related posts.
Recent Comments