For several years when I took my children to the doctor for a common ear infection or a cold that I knew needed an antibiotic it drove me crazy that I would get the physicians assistant instead of the doctor!
In fact I really could not tell you what the doctor looks like ....I have never seen the man!
Luckily for us my husbands company was bought out and the new insurance allows us quite a few more options for medical care!
Has anyone else had this experience?
I didn't think I or my insurance company should have to pay $100 to see the doctor when we actually didn't "see" the doctor!
2007-06-03 17:45:22 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Politics
******I asked this question in the politics section because I don't necessarily agree with socialized medicine but I do think that the current system needs some kind of overhaul!********
2007-06-03 17:47:06 · update #1
Tigers eye: I was not ever upset with the "quality" of care just that the "doctor" wasn't who I was care for by....but who I was billed for seeing!
2007-06-03 18:02:14 · update #2
greed and overbooking, it has become common place. you sit for a couple of hours to not see a doctor. my oldest son was delivered by an intern,yet the doctor got paid for not being there. that was almost thirty years ago.
2007-06-03 18:25:44 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have worked all of my life and raised my family, now I dread going to the Doctor because it is at least $100 each visit, and when the Dr, comes into the room he gives you a big phony smile and says here is a piece of paper so you can go to the lab and have some test ran, then the test cost in most cases $300 or more dollars, and he only spent 3 minutes with the patient, and there are at least 20 more waiting in the waiting room, just how much money doe's a doctor need to make ? I know he went to school for 4 years, then served his internship but, he is paid a fair amount for the next 4 years, as an intern, do they want to make up for the first 4 years of loss in one day? I am beginning to think socialized medicine is the only answer as who can afford this theft or robbery? then when they are working for the gov, for a lesser rate maybe they will think they should not have robbed the people.
2007-06-03 17:59:51 · answer #2 · answered by james w 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
In case you did not know there is a national shortage of healthcare providers (no kidding). Some areas are worse off than others. Actual doctors are a rare comodity now, in fact I normally see nurse practitioner when I go to the doctor and I know my doctor personally. They have had to take PAs and NPs in to handle an increasing patient load.
Now as to why you are charged for a doctor, these people cannot work on their own, they must have an MD over them. Also before they make a prescription most places they have to run their care plan by the doctor before they can do the prescription.
By the way, it is only going to get worse. The baby boomers are coming and we as a nation are not really prepared. I am sure if you have looked around you have probably seen a lot of hospitals rebuilding, renovating and increasing size. That is because at around 2011 roughly 20% of the population will be retired.
2007-06-03 18:00:07 · answer #3 · answered by JFra472449 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Most of the time you are charged for visiting a clinic/hospital, not for seeing the actual doctor (at least that is how it is done where I live).
I prefer seeing the PA or RN many times, since I know that I will be seeing someone sooner and be able to get on with my day quicker.
If you are taking your kids in for minor things (such as the ear infection or a cold) do they need to see a doctor? I think the PA is more than capable of handling an ear infection.
Also, I live in a rural area without many doctors available, so I assume that I will not be able to see a doctor whenever I want. If there is something serious, yeah, I can see him. But for normal, everyday problems (such as when I last went in for Bronchitis), let me talk to anyone and get going.
2007-06-03 18:25:19 · answer #4 · answered by Still Learning 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you are going for a new condition I think that you should actually see the doctor. For monitring situations the assistant is okay. When I was taking thyroid medication I had to go every 6 weeks for weighing and blood tests. I saw the assistant a couple of times but in that case it was appropriate. If I had reported any side effects or the blood test weren't normal, the doctor would have come in. My relatives are all European and they often just see a nurse or some type of assistant.
2007-06-03 18:02:33 · answer #5 · answered by scarlettt_ohara 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes I have been charged. Worse yet, in Canada, during my pregnancy I saw my doctor twice, and the rest of the time saw a nurse practitioner. When the doctor finally showed up to deliver my baby, the head was already crowning--and for this he got paid.
Let's resist this trend to use nurses. Kaiser Permanente in the US is doing this, especially to save money for pre-natal care. It's gotten so that we hardly ever get to talk to a doctor for anything, yet our fees don't go down. Kaiser and the other insurance companies' profits go up.
2007-06-03 17:55:31 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
Well that depends. Decent question Kelly. But in my case last year I had a herniated disc in my neck. I went to a clinic that specialized in spinal issues.
I saw a PA the whole time. In this case I was happy about it because the doctor he worked under was old and I believe out of touch of newer proceedures and the PA knew what he was doing.
So really all that matters to me is that I get good care.
2007-06-03 18:11:15 · answer #7 · answered by sociald 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I was forced to see the nurse practitioner, i never agreed, they hated me but I gave them the same argument as you have. I always got to see the doctor.I would email my insurance company, because you are being charged under the Doctors Tax ID number ,although you did not see him. I do not think they can charge you full fee . It is worth your time to email the Insurance company.
2007-06-03 18:02:56 · answer #8 · answered by Delara 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It's fraud, pure and simple. Nothing against nurse practitioners, or assistants, but they are not doctors, and your insurance company should not be paying the fee for the doctor.
Personally, I prefer a Nurse Practitioner. Primarily, because they tend to be better listeners, and they tend to be less expensive.
2007-06-03 18:19:30 · answer #9 · answered by ? 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋
I usually get to see the doctor I go to. I feel bad for you that you didn't. It seems like the guy is lazy, or busy.
2007-06-03 17:49:36 · answer #10 · answered by Saint 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋