By Bruce Japsen
| The American Medical Association this afternoon endorsed the Democratic health reform bill as President Barack Obama and leaders in the U.S. House push to win over undecided House members who will vote on the bill this weekend.
“The pending bill is imperfect but…we cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good,” said Dr. James Rohack, president of the Chicago-based national doctor group. “The status quo is simply not acceptable.”
The AMA represents a quarter million U.S. physicians.
If the AMA and trial lawyers are both behind this, there must be something fishy for the rest of us. Next you will be saying that the “nonprofit” hospital associations are in step, too.
Isnt anyone asking just how much it will cost John Smith to get insurance — how much his monthly premium is? Cant seem to find this answer. Since were being forced to purchase insurance, this MUST mean that the monthly premiums will only be $50-$100 for full quality care, right?
Completely agree with Jack. The AMA would never get involved if this bill didn’t, in some way, benefit them. That goes for the trail laywers too.
Me thinks the AMA has ulterior motives for supporting this monstrosity of a bill.
Are you people stupid? Do you know how to read? Read the bill, or at least the highlights of it and you will completely understand why the AMA is supporting it. But posting blind comments about how this is fishy without making any solid references or pointing out facts is just plain dumb!
I do believe the AMA has exclusive royalty income from the coding rights for the new billing process. I think that says it all. In addition, the AMA consist of a very small percentage of actual working doctors.
Just checked and the AMA membership opnly represents 29% of doctors in the US. Please check yourself.
@ Bones – I read the bill all 2700 + pages. The AMA is in support because they know by passing the bill, as is, they benefit greatly because their coding revenue will go through the roof. Since they don’t actually do anything for AMA members, their membership is down – way down, and their income has to come from somewhere. Well, here are the facts, per your request of course.
The AMA endorsed the health care reform bill because it addresses the problems of Americans getting sick from diseases that are otherwise treatable if they seek proper medical treatment from their primary care physicians. High blood pressure, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and asthma patients who don’t have any health insurance cannot be clogging our nation’s ERs for care they should be receiving at their doctor’s office. Only in our nation’s health care industry can people show up without any money and expect first rate health care….try doing that at McDonald’s and see if you get that Happy Meal!
I have heard that only 30% of medical people belong to the AMA. If this is close to being true, what credence does the AMA related endorsing statement have?
Ben – Please, did you cut and paste your comment from the AMA website?
We all know that America needs to do something about health care. But the way it’s proposed will cost you, me, and every middle class working America much more than what it costs now. Once this is addressed I’m sure people will not have a problem.
Hey, AMA:
First, do no harm. You are violating the Hippocratic oath with your disingenuous endorsement of this bill which will line your pockets with coding revenue while destroying the quality of health care in America.
Health care reform? Uninsured? Here is what we need:
1) Prohibit insurers from dropping those with pre-existing conditions.
2) Set up a high risk pool for the uninsured with such conditions.
3) Expand Medicaid to include the uninsured.
4) Leave the rest of us the hell alone!
My husband is a physician, and he is NOT a member of the AMA. Less than 10% who are on staff at his hospital are members. As a nurse, I am also disgusted by the ANAs support of this bill. Both groups selling it’s members, and non-members in the profession, into government slavery. Glad we paid all the money for training, to be reimbursed a sliver of the costs. Bye-bye medicine and nursing.
By the way, any fool who thinks that people won’t go to the ER once they have a doctor is seriously mistaken. As an ER nurse, most of our patients DO have primary health care physicians, but can’t stand waiting 24 hours to see him/her for a belly ache. Until we repeal EMTALA (that little federal law that prohibits hospitals from seeing everyone with a split toenail, it will NEVER EVER stop.
Also, just because you have “insurance” doesn’t mean you’ll find a doctor to accept said insurance. There are millions on public aid who never see a doctor either because they again, don’t want to wait to see someone in the free clinic (maybe a 3 hour wait, even though they have NO job this simply isn’t acceptable to them), or just don’t care. We have a here and now society. Fast food medicine is the way they want it, even if everyone else is paying for it. Work in the ER before you post about topics that you obviously know nothing about.
I mistyped about EMTALA. It forces hospitals to see EVERY PATIENT regardless of the severity of their illness. From a runny nose to a hang nail.