Dr. Rob on the recent ACP cries for help:

This begs the question: so what? What is the big deal? We can just use subspecialists and physician extenders to fill the slots. Patients can become more empowered to provide their own care using e-visits and web-guided care. This sounds sacrilegious coming from a primary care physician, but it is what is being said on the outside by some. Although the feelings may not be so overt by the politicians in Washington, it seems that inaction in the face of a crisis is tantamount to denial of the reality of that crisis.

What is being done? Medicare is giving a 1.5% bonus to physicians for quality measures. This will amount to a few hundred extra dollars for the average physician (with an enormous amount of work to set up a system that will properly submit the right codes in the proper format). That is not help; it is an insult.