By Bruce Japsen |
Another large Chicago-based health care lobby, the American Hospital
Association today endorsed the Democratic health reform bill as
President Barack Obama and leaders in the U.S. House push to win over
undecided House members who will vote on the bill as early as Sunday.
Even though hospitals face reductions in payments from the federal
Medicare health insurance program for the elderly under the proposed
legislation, these facilities say the bill will extend coverage to 32
million people who have no medical care coverage.
“For hospitals, reform holds the promise of better access to quality care for all,” said Rich Umbdenstock, president and chief executive officer of AHA, which represents some 5,000 U.S. hospitals, most of them nonprofit facilities like three in four of the hospitals in Illinois.
“It is critical that we find a way to extend coverage to all and this bill takes a giant step forward. The time for action is now and we strongly urge the House to pass health reform that will improve the health care system for the patients and the communities we serve,” he said.
The AMA’s endorsement comes one day after the nation’s largest doctor group, the Chicago-based American Medical Association endorsed the legislation for similar reasons, saying its ability to expand coverage to more than 30 million people and reforms to the insurance industry that prevent health plans from dropping sick patients who have pre-existing conditions were critical.
Though these large lobbies supported the bill, physicians and hospital executives are divided. Umbdenstock, in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, said hospitals supporting the legislation are doing so as part of a “shared responsibility” to accept cuts in order to expand coverage. But, he added, the “impact of these reductions … must be closely monitored.”
Please, when writing of the almighty AMA please mention that it represents only 20-some percent of all doctors. The vast majority of doctors do not like this monstrosity of a bill at all.
The AMA does not represent many physicians, and will likely represent even fewer after this. The California, Texas and Georgia branches of the AMA all came out opposing the Obama healthcare plan, mainly because the legislation would create a physician payment board, “independent of and not answerable to Congress — with the authority to unilaterally determine physicians’ Medicare payments.”
If you think healthcare is going to get cheaper, think again. Already, based on medicare payments alone, physicians are giving away care. Medicare reimbursements bare cover the overhead of supplies, malpractice and office staff. Physicians will either simply no longer see medicare patients or put them at the end of the line.
Be Thorough | March 20, 2010 3:33 PM | Reply
Please, when writing of the almighty AMA please mention that it represents only 20-some percent of all doctors. The vast majority of doctors do not like this monstrosity of a bill at all.
You are so generous!!
It’s less than 20% – More like 14%
The AMA does not speak for the majority of the doctors.. They represent a few.
while the AMA doesn’t represent all doctors, saying that “a vast majority of doctors does not support this bill” is a complete lie.
Most doctors do in fact support the current bill. Most specialists do not. Then again, specialists account for a small fraction of our nation’s doctors.
My wife has worked at a hospital for 37 years; none of the physicians from her hospital like this plan and some are considering retiring if it goes into effect.
What choice did the AMA have? No support for HCR = No Congressional fix for 2010 Medicare cuts. Funny how this all works, isn’t it? You all still like how your man Obama is treating you? He has all you docs in his crosshairs–he doesn’t like all the money that you make (especially the specialists!).
And my brothers nephew knows a bunch of doctors and they all love the bill. Oh yeah and by the way most doctors support this bill, I know because I personally asked every single doctor in the country.
idjits.
I am a physician and am NOT a member of the AMA. The same goes for most of my colleauges. AMA is useless as is this bill. I for one will practice less or leave medicine in 3 years. Great to have insurance but no doctors!
Does someone want to add that one of Illinois’ largest employer and US exporters will cut more jobs because of Obamacare because of the increased costs! Obamacare is also going to cost Illinois a billion to meet state obligations requiring massive tax increases. There won’t be any private sector employers left to pay for Obamacare. The US is doomed and a civil war is highly likely as common people begin to remove the liberal elites destroying the country.
My husband is a physician, and he is NOT a member of the AMA. Less than 10% who are on staff at his hospital are members. As a nurse, I am also disgusted by the ANAs support of this bill. Both groups selling it’s members, and non-members in the profession, into government slavery. Glad we paid all the money for training, to be reimbursed a sliver of the costs. Bye-bye medicine and nursing.
farfel | March 20, 2010 10:54 PM | Reply
My wife has worked at a hospital for 37 years; none of the physicians from her hospital like this plan and some are considering retiring if it goes into effect.
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My wife has worked at a hospital for 37 years; all of the physicians from her hospital like this plan and some are considering not retiring if it goes into effect.
Obviously membership in the AMA needs to become a requirement to be a physician.
In a couple of years after the government has edged out the insurance companies. The government/politicians will need new bad guys to blame for soaring health care costs.
Doctors, Hospitals you’ve been warned your turn is next .
GOP slogan, We have nothing but fear, itself.
‘The AMA Supports the Health Care Bill’. Since when? We just love reading more propaganda. Put as much lipstick on this pig you want, it won’t help. It’s passage will be a Constitutional crisis for the Nation, pure and simple. This then explains why Obama is so keen to put more of his cronies on the Supreme Court. Only brain dead democrats would consider cheating, lying, bribing, locking out the opposing view from tax payer funded government offices and procedures a ‘win’. It’s not a win, it is pathetic and wrong on many levels.
Too bad the tribune used the AMA in the article title off of their main webpage and not the AHA
This health care bill will further increase workload at community clinics from 15 mins per patient to 10 mins, I wonder about malpractice – Sorry Mr. John Doe there has been a mix up, the meds I gave you belong to Mr. John Smith. Here is his home phone number, call him and exchange ur meds and peel off the label for HIPPA reasons. Thanks and have a good day.
Don’t offer solutions, when you don’t know what the question is.
Get out of that cubicle and open your eyes and put on those LISTENING EARS.