Care to see something funny?

[Substance]

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Is it just me, or do you find it strange that the AMA signed off on this letter?

http://pathologyblawg.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/PIMA-Letter-to-House.pdf

I suppose the AMA supports its dermatologists, neurologists and gastroenterologists more than its radiologists, pathologists and radiation oncologists.

 

[Silent Cool]

Is it just me, or do you find it strange that the AMA signed off on this letter?

http://pathologyblawg.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/PIMA-Letter-to-House.pdf

I suppose the AMA supports its dermatologists, neurologists and gastroenterologists more than its radiologists, pathologists and radiation oncologists.

Isn't the gov't cutting into Neurologists right now? GI will get its turn. Colonoscopy is easy fruit to pick. And it will be picked eventually.

 

[pathstudent]

There is some validity to their argument.

If a patient has a stress test in the cardiologists office, the reimbursement is hundreds vs thousands if it is in a hospital.

But having anatomical pathology in the office saves nothing. It is pure self referral and incentivizes clinicians to rack up the bill as it goes into their pocket. Medicare pays the same whether the biopsy is processed in the office or sent to a pathology lab.

The AMA is run by internists and that is the #1 problem with the AMA. They come across as representing the field of medicine as a whole, but that is unequivocally false.

 

[caw13]

The CEO/executive vice president of the AMA is a pathologist, James L. Madara. What are we doing to ourselves?!?

http://www.ama-assn.org/resources/doc/about-ama/bio-madara.pdf

 

[Substance]

The CEO/executive vice president of the AMA is a pathologist, James L. Madara. What are we doing to ourselves?!?

http://www.ama-assn.org/resources/doc/about-ama/bio-madara.pdf

That's not unexpected.

Ya know, instead of biatching about the job market and pod labs, maybe you could each mail this guy a stern letter via post. Maybe you should get together with the radiologists and radiation oncologists and draft some choice words for this guy.

 

[WEBB PINKERTON]

If in-office labs disappear, it just means the return of client billing. It's really a no win situation anyways for pathologists. Is bidding 5-10 bucks on the TC really any better? It is hopefully a victory for patients but who knows, client billing leads to overutilization as well.

 

[Torsed]

Webb I contend client billing has returned, screwing me now more than pods.

Like the Sith Empire.

 

[WEBB PINKERTON]

Webb I contend client billing has returned, screwing me now more than pods.

Like the Sith Empire.

Client billing is worse than in-office labs by far. Billions of dollars wasted due to physician markups. I will never understand how this is legal and was shocked to see it when I entered practice. It shows that there are too many damn pathologists out there competiting for specimens. There is no way this would be so prevalent if the market wasn't flooded with underemployed pathologists. It's the best sign of a crappy job market.

Client billing screwed me bad till 2011 when we got it outlawed in my state. I swear on a stack of bibles, if you wanted derm, you had to go sub 10 dollars on the TC with your pricing. One joke of a lab was doing it for 5 and took a large account from us. That lab is struggling big time last I heard and about to bite the dust. Good riddance. Just wish the laws were for ALL lab testing. Still plenty of tests to client bill and as the line between CP and AP blurs, more and more AP specimens will fall back into the con.

CAP needs to be greasing more politicians with the hundreds of millions of dollars they take from us for proficiency testing and fighting this with everything they have.