One of the more heartfelt pieces I have done for PJTV was Obama’s Plot Against the Doctors. I have decided to revisit it again today in the light of this extraordinary poll just published by Investors Business Daily: 45% of Doctors Would Consider Quitting If Congress Passes Health Car Overhaul. Terry Jones of IBD writes:
Two-thirds, or 65%, of doctors say they oppose the proposed government expansion plan. This contradicts the administration’s claims that doctors are part of an “unprecedented coalition” supporting a medical overhaul.
It also differs with findings of a poll released Monday by National Public Radio that suggests a “majority of physicians want public and private insurance options,” and clashes with media reports such as Tuesday’s front-page story in the Los Angeles Times with the headline “Doctors Go For Obama’s Reform.”
AdvertisementNowhere in the Times story does it say doctors as a whole back the overhaul. It says only that the AMA — the “association representing the nation’s physicians” and what “many still regard as the country’s premier lobbying force” — is “lobbying and advertising to win public support for President Obama’s sweeping plan.”
The AMA, in fact, represents approximately 18% of physicians and has been hit with a number of defections by members opposed to the AMA’s support of Democrats’ proposed health care overhaul.
It’s no surprise the LAT takes the word of the bureaucrats at the AMA over the doctors themselves who were actually polled by IBD (a random sampling of 1376 practicing physicians). I would faint if the Times publishes the poll, but we’ll see. This even though everyone knows there is already a shortage of physicians and nurses in this country before the installation of Obama’s semi-existent “plan,” whatever that is.
Oh, I forgot. Mustn’t criticize Obama or I’ll be a racist.
Just came across this blog today, and really enjoyed it! Keep up the good work.
I posted a very funny YouTube video about Obama and the current debate over the size of government today on my site. Check it out:
http://rjmoeller.com/2009/09/obama-and-the-white-stripes-a-youtube/
Don’t you like it when the most respected liberal profession is on a collision course with the most trumpeted liberal administration?
As I wrote before, when California doctors demanded tort reform they got it after they went on strike.
There is another source of a pending doctor shortage. Half of current medical students are women. I have worked with a large medical group that has a problem with them.
Many of the women do not want to practice full-time. To accommodate them the group permits them to share a practice. In other words, 2 doctors now do the work of one.
In addition, the women get a four month maternity leave, which means that the group must find a way to fill in for them. This is an unanticipated side-effect of women’s lib, and should be considered in making decisions about medical “personpower.”
Another factor is that with the shrinkage of doctors, socialized medicine countries are competing with other countries to acquire doctors for their citizens. If there is no private incentive other countries could steal doctors.
My comments are disappearing again.
No problem! The Obama Administration will change the requirements to become a doctor to 3 weeks of advanced first aid, with a requirement of instant membership in the SEIU where any malpractice will be exempt from liability and lawsuits. Doctor shortage solved!
This simply isn’t possible. President Obama assured everyone in America that they’ll be able to keep their doctor, therefore, no doctors can leave the profession or else their patients won’t be able to keep them. If that happened, that would mean the President was either wrong or lying, and I’m sorry, but that just couldn’t be.