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Posted by
Eric Wilson
on
July 13, 2009
PRESCRIPTION: We have an obligation to ensure that Americans covered under Medicaid, who also happen to be our neediest patients – children and America’s poorest citizens – can see the doctor they need to see, when they need to see a doctor. Expanding the number of Americans who qualify for Medicaid without first making certain there are enough doctors to see Medicaid patients is irresponsible and a disservice to these individuals. To avoid this potential crisis, Rep. Burgess proposes that states and the federal government undertake the changes necessary to address the barriers of access to a doctor for Medicaid patients. DOCTOR’S ORDER: Throwing more Americans onto the rolls of government-run health care, specifically Medicaid, without first ensuring there will be a doctor for them to see is wrong. Coverage under Medicaid should equal access to a doctor, and must be a part of the national health care debate.
Posted by
Eric Wilson
on
July 10, 2009
PROBLEM: As the U.S. population continues to grow at a rapid pace, the concern that there may not be enough doctors to care for all Americans is growing as well. If we do nothing to assist the training of new physicians, waiting lines will grow longer, lapses in treatment will occur, and many of our small and rural communities will be at risk of not having physicians to meet their growing needs.As the U.S. population continues to grow at a rapid pace, the concern that there may not be enough doctors to care for all Americans is growing as well. If we do nothing to assist the training of new physicians, waiting lines will grow longer, lapses in treatment will occur, and many of our small and rural communities will be at risk of not having physicians to meet their growing needs. PRESCRIPTION: Helping doctors as they enter training in medical school, and continuing assistance throughout their residency in high-need specialties and medically underserved areas will make certain that when you need help, the doctor is in. Helping doctors as they enter training in medical school, and continuing assistance throughout their residency in high-need specialties and medically underserved areas will make certain that when you need help, the doctor is in.Rep. Burgess has sponsored bipartisan legislation - H.R. 914, the Physician Workforce and Graduate Medical Education Enhancement Act, and H.R. 916, the Preventive Medicine and Public Health Training Act - to address the looming doctor shortage. These bills would offer incentives for physicians to practice in rural and underserved areas of the country, helping to ensure health care coverage actually equals access to a doctor for all Americans.
Posted by
Eric Wilson
on
July 09, 2009
Problem: Every 6, 12 or 18 months, for the last several years, Medicare doctors have faced steep payment cuts, threatening their ability to keep their doors open. Congress, instead of biting the bullet and working to find a long-term and permanent solution to this problem, passes short-term fixes, leaving America’s doctors uncertain about their ability to continue serving our nation’s seniors and keep practicing medicine.
Prescription: Doctors need a stable and reasonable predictor of their Medicare reimbursement rates, and the current formula, the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR), is inadequate and outdated. In Texas alone, there could be cuts of over $200 million in 2010 for Medicare physicians under the SGR formula.
For the past few years, Rep. Burgess has introduced a bill, and will again this year, that would finally take a serious approach to reforming the way payments to Medicare doctors are determined. We need a permanent fix to the Medicare payment formula, and one that is not subject to the whims of political will and influence. Doctor's Order: Our nation’s Medicare doctors are forced to live under the guillotine of yearly cuts just for seeing our nation’s seniors. Reforms to this system are important to ensuring our aging population has enough doctors to care for them, and must be a part of the national health care debate.
Posted by
Eric Wilson
on
July 08, 2009
Problem: Many patients visiting hospitals and clinics for health care services have no idea what they will pay. This lack of transparency and up-front price listings causes confusion and discourages patients from receiving the critical care they need.
Prescription: Restaurants have menus displaying the prices of the products they offer, why should hospitals providing health care services be any different? A patient should be able to know what they are paying for and how much they will pay out-of-pocket. Rep. Burgess has introduced HR 2249, the Health Care Price Transparency Promotion Act of 2009, which aims to make health care more affordable by promoting greater transparency about the costs of health care services for patients seeking care.
The bill is supported by the American Hospital Association, and is an important step in improving our country’s health care system by focusing on patients, giving them more choices and more control over their health care decisions by providing up-front information on cost. Doctor's Order: Real health care reform should be about empowering patients and letting them "own" their health care and medical choices. More transparency in health care costs and prices is an important step in achieving that goal, and must be a part of the national health care debate.
Posted by
Eric Wilson
on
July 07, 2009
Problem: Today, too many doctors are forced to practice defensive medicine and face the constant threat of lawsuits and unsustainable medical liability insurance rates, which results in millions of dollars in unnecessary tests and procdeucres. Furthermore, seasoned medical professionals are retiring early because staying in practice is no longer financially feasible, further contributing to our nation's doctor shortage. This is a growing crisis that is pushing affordable health care beyond the grasp of millions of Americans.
Prescription: National, across-the-board change in the medical justice system would lower costs and improve care by lessening the threat of overzealous trial attorneys and the unmerited lawsuits they often bring about. Health Caucus Chair Rep. Burgess has introduced the Medical Justice Act , H.R. 1468, which is modeled after the successful reforms Texas passed in 2003, and would enact these commonsense reforms on a national level. The results are documented reductions in liability insurance rates, reported growth in the number of doctors licensed each year, and increased charity care, among others.
Doctor's Order: Runaway lawsuits are unnecessary and costly, and reforming medical liability must be a part of the national health care debate.
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