Well, today through Saturday I am at the convention of the Pennsylvania Osteopathic Medical Association getting some continuing medical education credits. It is always nice having the chance to catch up with some friends from medical school, internship, and residency and hear about their adventures in practice.
Talk About Insurance Reform…
This year the conversations were particularly interesting in light of the medical insurance reform. Some docs are elated by it, and others are terrified. The interesting thing is that again, I am dealing with a whole lot of folks who just spew back the talking points that their respective sides feed them. To date, I am the only physician I know who has actually taken the time to read the bill.
Do I like all of it? No- of course not. It would be impossible to create a bill which would ultimately satisfy everyone. As it stands, I like about 80% of what we got. I think the insurance & pharmaceutical industries got off easy with this legislation- I would have like to have seen accountability for how our premium dollars are being spent- but by and large I think the bill does more good than not, and at least it’s a start.
One of the things I see people focusing on more than any other aspect of the bill is the concept of mandatory health insurance. I don’t have as much as a problem with this as some of my colleagues do, in as much as we are already responsible for purchasing auto insurance- so I don’t see this as being very different. Some opponents say that rationale doesn’t hold up because you can choose not to drive. My response to that is that in most cities there is a federally subsidized mass transit system for those who choose not to drive- or simply cannot afford a car or insurance, so there is a safety net.
Look, I know a lot of you don’t like the idea of the Federal Government getting involved in health insurance, but the alternative would be to hyper-regulate the insurance industry (which has largely chosen to not self-regulate in any meaningful way) and that would not make free-enterprise folks happy either. I don’t know what the correct answer is, but it was interesting to speak with so many people on the front lines, and hear their opinions.
Osteopaths being Osteopaths…
On a slight side note, one of the most discouraging things about this convention was hearing about how many of my fellow Osteopathic physicians have given up Osteopathic Manual Medicine (manipulation) altogether. They all know it works wonderfully- they have other reasons. Many of them site the poor insurance reimbursement, or the commitment of time as reasons for forsaking this fantastic modality.
I became a physician because of my exposure to some wonderful Osteopathic physicians (my father being one of them,) and I had the opportunity to see hands-on medicine at work from a very young age. It saddens me that in this time when Americans are literally clamoring for all sorts of alternative approaches to medicine, that we have this long-tested modality at our disposal, and yet it is fading out of existence. D.O.s should be experiencing a renaissance, but instead are settling for assimilation.
Thankfully, not all of us are going that route. I maintain my commitment to Manual Medicine- and tomorrow’s ‘One Thing’ segment will be by a wonderful friend and physician, Matthew Dubrow, D.O.
I have known Matt for many years. His father was an extraordinary Opthalmologist in the hospital where I did my residency, and Matt is truly gifted at Osteopathic technique. I know his ‘One Thing’ will be a good one!
Thanks for stopping by, and I look forward to catching up with you here tomorrow.
Best,
Andy
Really, what could be more fun than a medical conference??
Drug companies showing you the latest pill for whatever ails you.
