Opinion
Untangle SCHIP from the needed Medicare pay increase for physicians
LETTER — Posted Sept. 17, 2007
Regarding "Fate of Medicare pay raise hinges on contentious SCHIP negotiations" (Article, Aug. 20): It is distressing that the Democratic Congress feels it can bribe physicians to accept another step towards socialized medicine in America by including a small increase in physician pay in their State Children's Health Insurance Program bill proposal.
This small increase is an insult to the dedicated providers of care to the recipients of government-funded health care and doesn't nearly cover costs of providing this care.
There is nothing good for American medicine in this bill, and the AMA should not support it just so we don't lose more money.
Congress can choose to fix the flawed formula for physician reimbursement immediately and independent of this piece of legislation.
Failure to fix the flawed formula will not only harm access to care by the recipients of government-funded health care but will contribute to the decline in quality of all of American medicine secondary to increased socialization.
Robert J. Cox, MD, Barnesville, Ga.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/09/17/edlt0917.htm.
