NEW YORK TIMES: Kim Little had not thought much about the tiny white spot on the side of her cheek until a physician’s assistant at her dermatologist’s office warned that it might be cancerous. He took a biopsy, returning 15 minutes later to confirm the diagnosis and schedule her for an outpatient procedure at the Arkansas Skin Cancer Center in Little Rock, 30 miles away.
That was the prelude to a daylong medical odyssey several weeks later, through different private offices on the manicured campus at the Baptist Health Medical Center that involved a dermatologist, an anesthesiologist and an ophthalmologist who practices plastic surgery. It generated bills of more than $25,000…
Ms. Little’s seemingly minor medical problem — she had the least dangerous form of skin cancer — racked up big bills because it involved three doctors from specialties that are among the highest compensated in medicine, and it was done on the grounds of a hospital. Many specialists have become particularly adept at the business of medicine by becoming more entrepreneurial, protecting their turf through aggressive lobbying by their medical societies, and most of all, increasing revenues by offering new procedures — or doing more of lucrative ones… (more)
EDITOR: One needs to take the same precautions when dealing with the medial profession as in buying a car. The sellers motivations aren’t much different. In fact, one should be all the more cautious to avoid unnecessary and potentially dangerous procedures.
Unlike car buyers, patients care, medicine and accessories are often covered by health insurance so they don’t pay much heed to cost. The physician’s office recommends and they say yes. Car salesmen must be very envious.
This is one of the reasons why health care in the USA consumes half again as much of the Gross Domestic Product than in other countries ranked way of the USA for overall quality.
“First do no harm” has been replaced by “Every specialist a millionaire.”
