Health Care Reform for America Thread

[Sava]

Because the third time is always the charm!

[Guynemer]

I've long ago resigned myself to the fact that we're never going to have any sort of real, beneficial health care reform. It's very freeing and liberating to give up on your dreams like that. I hardly ever feel the urge to kill random passers-by anymore.

[Drake Tungsten]

I used to like you Guy until I found out that pediatricians have been giving unnecessary tonsillectomies to American children simply for the money. Have you no shame?

[Guynemer]

Those would be otolaryngologists, Drake.

The only surgeries that pediatricians do are circumcisions. Which are also unnecessary, but try as I might, I have yet to talk a family out of getting one.

[Drake Tungsten]

That's not how Obama made it sound.

[Guynemer]

Must've missed that part. Either you, or he, or both, are mistaken. Either that, or he was trying to dumb it down for the audience, which, let's face it, is never a losing strategy with America.

[DanS]

Regarding circumcisions, are families moving away from them?

When I was born, it was pretty standard in the US.

[Guynemer]

They're moving away from them on the coasts, but not here in the Midwest.

[Drake Tungsten]

Must've missed that part.

[Sava]

It's very freeing and liberating to give up on your dreams like that. I hardly ever feel the urge to kill random passers-by anymore.

I did that, gave up on my dreams, and it just made me angrier. But I already wanted to kill everybody. So now, hmmm... I want to follow them into hell and torture them FOREVER

[Guynemer]

His larger point is absolutely true, though. The majority of tonsillectomies aren't necessary by any definition of the word. But ENTs can charge a fortune for them, and they are (usually) routine and quick surgeries.

Tympanostomy tubes (eardrum tubes for recurrent ear infections) are an even bigger profit generator for them. They can knock that **** out in, literally, 15 minutes, and charge thousands of dollars a pop.

[The Mad Monk]

But to get to the ENT, they have to get their primary physician's recomendation first, yes?

[Guynemer]

Depends on the ENT, and the coverage. But, more often than not, no, they don't need a recommendation.

[DirtyMartini]

It is somewhat disingenous to blame entirely blame the physicians for this problem.

Americans have an entitlement problem regarding health care. A common scenario: Little Johnny has frequent ear infections. Johnny's mommy thinks goes to the pediatrician who says "yes, Johnny does get ear infections quite a bit, but we'd prefer to treat these symptomatically with medicines because usually kids outgrow this as they get older". Mommy is pissed -- she wants the glorious SURGERY that will fix the problem. She will doctor shop or self refer to an ENT. She'll find one who is willing to do it. Tubes are a treatment for recurrent ear infections after all, they're just an expensive treatment.

Also, Martha has belly pain. She heard Mabel had belly pain and it was fixed by having her gallbladder taken out. Martha has been to the ED 6 times in 12 months with belly pain, each time she insists it is her gallbladder. The ED docs say that there is no convincing evidence that the GB is the culprit. Martha KNOWS it is her gallbladder. She will find a surgeon who will probably say "Well, there is no convining evidence that your gallbladder is the cuplrit, but you've tried a lot of other things. We could remove the gallbladder, but there is no guarantee that it will fix you pain. It could, in fact, make things worse". What do you think Martha is going to choose?

Basically, when empowered by their doctors to participate in making these kinds of decisions, Americans will almost without fail choose the most advanced/most expensive/newest/most glamorous test or procedure. Some people just WANT to have surgery. fixitnow fixitnow fixitnow.

[Jon Miller]

I had tubes in my ears 25 years ago.

Maybe I was an early adopter?

JM