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| Home Front: Culture Wars |
| From a Doctor Who Will Not Comply |
| 2010-03-25 |
| An M.D. in family practice passed along this letter she sent to her patients after Obamacare became law. She relates that, so far, "100% of those who have contacted me about it have supported me and accepted the new conditions." March 23, 2010 My Dear Patient, As you must know, Congress has just passed extensive legislation governing health care delivery and insurance systems. Whether you agree with what it does or not, we are all now subject to this law and its sweeping changes. I have always conducted my medical practice with my patient's best interests as my first priority. Although not legally obliged to do so, I have routinely provided you with a receipt that has all the codes necessary to bill your own health insurance company for any reimbursement to which you are entitled. Until now, that insurance company was a free enterprise despite the fact that it was heavily regulated by state and federal laws. Now the situation is quite different. Through the new law's mandates, regulatory powers and reform, health insurance is and will be largely a government activity which will have an ever larger jurisdiction over how doctors practice, make clinical judgments and are paid. The new law provides for about 150 new government agencies, many of which are designed to be ‘oversight' bureaucracies which will have the right to decide what medical care is legal to provide through insurance. Among other things, they will have the right to review my medical care of you and read your medical record. Now, as soon as you submit our economic transaction to your insurance company for reimbursement, you have involved me in these regulations and put me in the jurisdiction of government for my activities, decisions and behavior as your doctor. No one can have two masters. Either I can serve you as my patient or I can serve the government. Either I can continue to make your welfare and health my only concern, including the protection of your privacy and medical records, or I can abide by ever-increasing amounts of government regulations and dictates to my decisions. I can't do both. I choose to continue to follow my conscience and practice medicine to serve you. For this reason, I am responding to the situation created by this new law by exercising my right not to participate in any health insurance program. I will still provide you with the same medical services that I always have, but the interaction will be exclusively and privately between you and me. This means that I will provide you only with a receipt for the services you have paid for, but without the additional information that is required to submit your receipt for reimbursement to your health insurance company. That is the only way I can make sure there will be no conflict between following the law and serving you. Because the law is now in effect, so must these changes be to my practice. Sincerely, Linda Johnston, MD |
| Posted by:Beavis |
| #9 Obamaklatura be nice if we can get them to wear armbands or special uniforms. For the backlash |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-03-25 22:22 |
| #8 Well, yeah, Blondie. Just like they get to fly first class on our money, they get raises (again with our money) when we don't, etc., etc..... |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2010-03-25 22:15 |
| #7 Barbara, they probably will have it in some form for the Obamaklatura. |
| Posted by: Cornsilk Blondie 2010-03-25 22:12 |
| #6 |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2010-03-25 22:10 |
| #5 Well Cornsilk Blondie, unfortunatly the health system is not about health or care. It is as Dingle let slip and tried to lay off his slip on being tired rather than having tyrant aspirations, it is about "control of the people." BO and his leftists minions will learn that Americans have a steel in their spines and a legacy of freedom that has been paid for dearly. You can not govern Americans with force. And you cannot force physicians to practice medicine. You may end up having a health care system without doctors. Herding cats is much easier than herding Americans. I predict you will see considerable civil disobedience to hand-handed passed unjust laws. Consider it a matter of civil rights. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2010-03-25 22:09 |
| #4 In the mean time I'm contemplating any future hospitalization somewhere nice, like Costa Rica Club Med-ical |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-03-25 19:50 |
| #3 "possibly be able to write the fees off as medical expenses on our taxes" You don't really think the feds will continue to let you do that, do you, Blondie? As Glenn often quotes, "They'll turn us into beggars 'cause they're easier to please." >:-( |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2010-03-25 19:48 |
| #2 If the current combination of laws doesn't ban that now, they'll undoubtedly try later. In the mean time I'm contemplating any future hospitalization somewhere nice, like Costa Rica. |
| Posted by: eLarson 2010-03-25 19:41 |
| #1 This post got me to thinking....(yeah, pipe down back there....) Do any 'burgers know if this stupid Obamacare bill will outlaw what is commonly known as "concierge care" practices? Me & the Tsar were thinking that it might be a better option to pay the stupid fine to the lazy slobs in DC for not participating, pay the annual fee for a family plan with one of these practices and possibly be able to write the fees off as medical expenses on our taxes. (Besides, I think that the whole scheme would make my Obamabot sis in law cry if we could pull it off, which would make us happy indeed...) |
| Posted by: Cornsilk Blondie 2010-03-25 18:28 |