Shikha Dalmia: If the president is serious about lowering health care costs instead of advancing an ideologically driven government takeover of the industry, he should be doing everything in his power to disband the American Medical Association -- not cozy up to it.
The Evil-Mongering Of The American Medical Association - Forbes.com
Friday, August 28, 2009
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The American Medical Association helps doctors help patients and unites physicians nationwide to work on important professional and public health issues. As board chair of the AMA, I would like to correct the inaccuracies in Dalmia’s article.
The AMA does not in any way limit the number of people who pursue careers in medicine and has no power to do so. The AMA advocates for an increase in the physician workforce to meet the health-care needs of all Americans. We need to attract the best and brightest to careers in medicine and help practicing physicians continue to provide high-quality patient care.
The truth is, the cost of defensive medicine in this country is significant. The Department of Health and Human Services puts the annual cost of defensive medicine between $70 and $126 billion - and it should be addressed as part of health reform. Physicians are forced to consider the broken medical liability system when making decisions, resulting in defensive medicine.
Dalmia's comments on salary are off-base. Even an action as drastic as cutting physician income in half would only reduce overall health spending by about five percent. Reducing unnecessary costs that don't add to patient care is a smart way to be sure we’re getting the best value from our health-care dollar.
The AMA and its partners in the Scope of Practice Partnership are focused on ensuring that patients receive high-quality care provided by appropriately educated and trained health-care professionals.
Dedicated physicians work day and night to provide patients with high-quality care within the confines of a broken system - and the AMA is working to make the system better for patients and physicians.
Rebecca J. Patchin, M.D.
Board Chair, American Medical Association
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