Oh the inconsistency.

At least his statement gets to the heart of the poster’s thinking: he resents what he thinks doctors earn and he seems to think they earn more than airline pilots and shouldn’t (so do some schoolteachers; does he resent them, too?) And because he thinks that doctors earn too much, he thinks they should have to provide internet consultation at no charge. Either that, or watch while all their presumably wired but unsatisfied patients walk out their doors in search for some other doctor who will provide them that service at no charge. How convenient to forget that most doctors provide charity service for free to the needy, voluntarily. And let’s not even go to the involuntary taking that goes on all the time with losses from denied claims, outright patient fraud and other losses that in a retail setting would be seen as shoplifting.

Oh the irony.

Oh the irony.

I would ask you, Sir, if you would volunteer to be hassled at your work with legally risky activities for which you will “forego reimbursement”? Methinks the answer would be “No!”.

Where did you get this idea, Elliott? This is bunk, I think you made it up.

“The nerve of some people. You won’t accept my insurance even though I’ve been coming here every Thursday for two years.”

Does your insurance actually pay fairly, or is it one of those crappy policies that promises to pay but hardly does? What is your problem Elliott? Can’t you find a doctor willing to take your insurance? Every Thursday for two years sounds like everything is OK with you, or have you got some other problem?

“The nerve of some people. You make more than commercial airline pilots and you have the nerve to whine about money constantly.”

Sorry, Elliott, no one owes you their work for nothing, no matter what you think they earn. Grow up already. And which airline pilots were you referring to, pilots working for the starting commuters at $18,000 a year or trans-oceanic pilots with extensive experience who work 12 days a month at $200,000+ per year? And what is the merit of your comparison, anyway? Sounds like a combination of sour envy and misinformation on your part.

“I’m pretty sure EMRs, email, and e-prescribing are going to be part of healthcare whether you like it or not. You can embrace it and make it work for you or you can bitch and moan and be forced to do it against your will (or retire).”

Probably someday, once someone wants to pay for it. The problem is the systems are expensive, and haven’t really been shown to save money for practices even in the medium term, (records retrieval and strorage savings do not offset acquisition, training and maintenance costs of these systems). And then the email issue gets us back to earlier posters’ points: it is more work for no pay, basically a non-starter. When patients back up their demands by something meaningful, like being willing to pay for the extra service they want to consume rather than just pique at not having something for nothing, then you may see the service you want.

The nerve of some people. You won’t accept my insurance even though I’ve been coming here every Thursday for two years.

The nerve of some people. You make more than commercial airline pilots and you have the nerve to whine about money constantly.

I’m pretty sure EMRs, email, and e-prescribing are going to be part of healthcare whether you like it or not. You can embrace it and make it work for you or you can bitch and moan and be forced to do it against your will (or retire).

The nerve of some people.

Imagine this conversation.

Passenger, after arriving at destination, to cabby: “Payment? What for? Listen, why don’t you forgo reimbursement? You really should, if you actually care for your passengers. After all, sometimes when I use your services, I co-pay you all of 10 bucks.”

True enough. But that doesn’t mean I should have to give it up for free.

A little dramatic, don’t you think? Many practices operate websites and have automated information on hours, services and other practice-related information. Most do not do medical consultation by email. As far as being reachable, phone and fax is still the standard. E-mail is not preferred, except seemingly by the few who haunt online blog sites. Most patients seem to have no interest in e-mailing their doctors. I doubt that will change anytime soon, either.

As far as insurance goes, it is only as good as it pays. If a company has a crummy reimbursement schedule or an abusive claims payment practice, few doctors will want to take it.