Comments on: 46 Percent Of Doctors Will Tantrum If Health Care Reform Passed

By: Jim

Jim — Sun, 09 May 2010 11:18:47 +0000

They clearly aren’t true. Dobbs’ figures may be each true for one small slice of doctordom, but they cannot be true for all. For instance, Dobbs refers to doctors not getting pension plans. This isn’t true for doctors who work in hospitals and physician groups, an increasingly large number of doctors. In another instance, Dobbs refers to doctors not “earning a penny until they’re nearly thirty.” A student who graduates from college at the age of 22 and who goes to 4 years of medical school will start earning money during residency at the age of 26… not enough money to grow rich on, but certainly enough money to maintain for the duration of residency in most areas of the country. Dobbs’ rant is full of half truths like this. It is true doctors work hard. It is also true that doctors reap a reward.

By: J. Clifford

J. Clifford — Sat, 08 May 2010 23:28:10 +0000

So, if these claims were true, where are the 46 percent of physicians who have abandoned the practice of medicine, now that health care reform has been passed. I’m looking around, and I don’t see any doctor shortage.

By: Robert Dobbs

Robert Dobbs — Sat, 08 May 2010 18:47:46 +0000

Au contraire, patients with attitudes will soon not be tolerated. Very few doctors are in it to “get rich” – if they were, they’d be plumbers, electricians, union workers, or investment bankers. They go through at least 12 years of training after high school, racking up hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. They don’t earn a penny until they’re nearly thirty, and probably don’t break even on that education until they’re about 40. If they wash out along the way, the debt doesn’t go away, so the risk is high. During this time, they get 2-4 weeks off per year, working or studying 80+ hours per week the rest of the time. Once they enter private practice, they generate around $1M per year, but most of that goes to office payroll, supplies, building, insurance, and other overhead. Plus, besides seeing patients, they are CEOs in their spare time, because they have to manage staff and payroll, negotiate insurance contracts, and ensure regulatory compliance with the ever-changing laws. The doctors would love to explain to you why they can’t take Medicare, Medicaid, or Tricare (because non of those cover the COST of the visit!), yet many do take a limited number of these patients because they want to do the right thing. As people become more entitlement-minded, many doctors are starting to wonder if starting right out of high school with a $30/hour union job wouldn’t have been a better option (BTW – doctors don’t have pension plans, and most can’t get unemployment because they’re business owners)

By: ramone

ramone — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:36:23 +0000

doctors refusing patients will not be tolerated much longer. if you enter into medicine to get rich your motives and morals are way out of sync. doctors are just like athletes and drug dealers, there’s a line a mile long waiting to take their place. let them take their marbles and go home. at least they will be able to take their insurance with them into the unemployment line.’

By: anon

anon — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:28:29 +0000

My doctor can no longer afford to take government health care patients because they keep cutting reimbursement levels to honest doctors. Other doctors and pharmacies are in the same situation. This bill doesn’t help. Our young people are going to inherit a broken, bankrupt, and environmentally-savaged world where everything they say or do is recorded to use against them

By: ChuckleNuts

ChuckleNuts — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 19:58:27 +0000

A man was walking on the beach one day and he found a bottle in the sand.
He decided to open it. Inside was a genie!
The genie said, “I will grant you three wishes and three wishes only.”

The man thought about his first wish and decided, “I want ten million dollars transferred to a Swiss bank account.”

POOF! Ten million dollars was his.

Next he wished for a Ferrari, red in color.

POOF! There was the car sitting in front of him.

He asked for his final wish, “I wish I was irresistible to women.”

POOF! He turned into a box of chocolates.

By: ChuckleNuts

ChuckleNuts — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 18:25:39 +0000

UUUU soooo phunnie!

And so original too!

Give yourself a pat on the back and some free government handouts as a reward.

By: ramone

ramone — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 17:21:05 +0000

did you hear the one about the guru and the republican? seems the guru was holding a seminar that involved the power of the mind. he focused all his concentration on a rock and it evolved into a beautiful statue. the republican was amazed, “how did you do that?”. “mind over matter, my son.”, replied the guru. so, the republican picked out a rock and concentrated all his thoughts. park maintenance now chase pigeons off his statue as the rock watches over it’s creation.

By: ChuckleNuts

ChuckleNuts — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 02:59:23 +0000

….any further than I could push it with my mind….

And I’m figuring that wouldn’t be too far, based on observations of your mind’s power.

Just kidding! left yourself open on that one!
hahaha

By: Jim

Jim — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 01:35:51 +0000

You know, ramone, a recent survey indicates 100% approval* of the methodology of your poll.

(*survey with 100% completion rate based on a simple random sample of Irregular Times writers named Jim)