How to Reduce Medicare costs and Expand access to Doctors

Health
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Context: Many physicians who opted out of Medicare or who are non-participants cannot see patients with Medicare without severe penalty if the patient submits for reimbursement (intentionally or inadvertently). Therefore, many doctors simply will not chance accepting Medicare patients. This is a huge issue in psychiatry for example in which most prescribers do not accept insurance and there’s already a severe lack of geriatric psychiatrists.

**Solution:**If a patient wants to see a doctor who opted out of Medicare or is a non-participant, the patient should be able to waive their right to submit a claim to Medicare for that doctor and instead pay the full fee out of pocket if they choose to see these doctors. this rule ONLY applies to practices that do not accept any insurance (commercial/private) so practices don’t drop Medicare altogether.

**Implications: **

  1. expand access to care as more doctors will see Medicare patients
  2. give patients more doctors to choose from
    3. save the government in Medicare costs as it is no longer paying for the doctor visit for those patient who choose to do this for those specific doctors
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Thoughts?

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One way to save on Medicare costs is to eliminate the yearly wellness visit. Most Medicare recipients see their doctor at least once a year. There is no need for the wellness visits. How much does Medicare spend for these visits!!!

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Is there a difference between this and an annual physical? The whole point of the latter is to try and catch disease early, not say 5-10 years later after it’s progressed

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All the wellness visit does is your weight, blood pressure, asks questions like do you have rugs which can make you fall and give you 3 or 4 words to remember to check your memory. They cannot discuss any health issues.
To me it’s a waste of Medicare funds. I suppose if you don’t have annual checkups it could be beneficial.
At my annual visit my doctor goes over my blood work, asks if I have concerns and answers any questions. She suggests ways to be healthier and discusses any meds I need.