Recent Forbes article. Read and cry.
http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/05/physicians-training-prospects-lead-careers-cx_tw_0505doctors.html
http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/05/physicians-training-prospects-lead-careers-cx_tw_0505doctors.html
In 2007, OB/GYNs paid on average $275,466 annually for malpractice insurance. That number is a slight drop from 2006, when the average cost was $299,000
Part of that is due to the aging population and a stagnant number of medical-school applicants.
Haven't there been a record number of applicants this cycle?
Asking Forbes why you shouldn't be a doctor is like asking an Anglophile why you shouldn't live in France. Their perspective is irrelevant to anyone not entering medicine for financial reasons.
This figure struck me, however:
Can that be right?
now, admittedly there is a lot about healthcare that i don't yet understand, but i do know that medicare is facing a crisis in the future. still, how can they possibly cut reimbursement by so much?? 40% seems more than ridiculous! how is that possible? how reliable is this forbes ****e?
money isn't everything to me, and making a little less would certainly not affect my choice to pursue a career as a physician, but hell, i would like to one day be able to support a family and live comfortably!
People,
Heed the handwriting on the wall. The society as a whole has decided that it's paying TOO MUCH for healthcare, and decided to pay less. And now everyone's looking where to save a buck. Doctor's reimbursements are the easiest picking; physician political power is nil, and there is prevalent view that they're making a lot.
Expect 40-50% decrease in physician reimbursements in next 10 years.
not that i don't respect your perspective, but if IIRC aren't you already a physician?
the US will always need doctors and people always will want to be doctors, so wouldn't your efforts be better spent trying to band together with other physicians to stop this crap? you're already stuck. telling us to get out isn't going to do much to change things.
Jolie,
You're correct, I am a physician (in training). I have posted this link because as far as I know this is the most frequented premedical forum on the internet. I believe that telling you this has the potential to change things, namely it may decrease the number of medschool applicants. As a result of that, maybe the voters, and subsequently folks in Washington will begin to pay attention to what is happening.
Jolie,
You're correct, I am a physician (in training). I have posted this link because as far as I know this is the most frequented premedical forum on the internet. I believe that telling you this has the potential to change things, namely it may decrease the number of medschool applicants. As a result of that, maybe the voters, and subsequently folks in Washington will begin to pay attention to what is happening.
Recent Forbes article. Read and cry.
http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/05/physicians-training-prospects-lead-careers-cx_tw_0505doctors.html
Yeah, right.Expect 40-50% decrease in physician reimbursements in next 10 years.
the article is complete garbageRecent Forbes article. Read and cry.
http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/05/physicians-training-prospects-lead-careers-cx_tw_0505doctors.html
Oh, look, another Nilf thread.
Yeah, right.
hahah i love your avatara- nothing earth shattering
b- career decisions aren't always based entirely on money
c- lots of docs don't have to be on call
People,
Heed the handwriting on the wall. The society as a whole has decided that it's paying TOO MUCH for healthcare, and decided to pay less. And now everyone's looking where to save a buck. Doctor's reimbursements are the easiest picking; physician political power is nil, and there is prevalent view that they're making a lot.
Expect 40-50% decrease in physician reimbursements in next 10 years.
Which begs the question - how can increasing demand for doctors lead to decreased reimbursement rates?
lisichka said:my other question is: who is DIRECTLY responsible for increasing the number of medical student class spots??? AMA??? why not graduate 400 people per class instead of hundred? why not do this?
Because they would have to quadruple their facilities. Medical schools like money (have you seen the application fees?), they would take more people if they could.
Ive talked to a few deans that think the Physician shortage is being blown out of proportion.i doubt there is a shortage of doctors because of facility shortage... it is simply an excuse.
many medschools have facilities to graduate > 1000 students per class. rich institutions like harvard, hopkins, ucla, nyu... for some reason all medical schools (large and small) in the US have similiar number of class spots (100-160 people/class). i think there is another reason for such low student number per class
Recent Forbes article. Read and cry.
http://www.forbes.com/2008/05/05/physicians-training-prospects-lead-careers
-cx_tw_0505doctors.html
Next year's 10 percent cut is just the tip of the iceberg. Over nine years the cuts total about 40 percent, while the government estimates that the cost of caring for patients will increase 20 percent. Over the life of the cuts, 77 percent of physicians say they will be forced to limit the number of new Medicare patients they treat.
"As physicians brace for nine years of steep payment cuts, it will be extremely difficult for them to continue accepting new Medicare patients into their practices," cautioned Dr. Wilson. "The baby boomers begin entering the program in 2010, and the Medicare cuts increase the likelihood that there may not be enough doctors to care for the huge influx of new Medicare patients."
This is my favorite comment. The fact that I have also heard this from my friends and classmates deeply disturbs me.
Doctors make absorbent amounts of money for the work they actually do. Sure it is intense from a load perspective, however, it's not dangerous by any means, your work environment is very comfortable, and you have loads of job security, mobility and flexibility. So yes you have to sacrifice up front a few years to make 5 times the national wage average. Giving up 5-10 years for a 5x multiple in wage over your working life is a small sacrifice. I find it funny doctors complain about having to sacrifice a few years when you get a much better life than the rest of society out of it. Stop being hypocritical and take a hard look at your life some time.
I personally would like to see a better policy put in place that would further protect doctors from lawsuits with the trade off for a ceiling on doctor pay (similar to the systems in the UK and Canada). Nobody deserves to make 5, 10 or 20 times the national average on pay unless they are truly special and add considerable value to mankind. Just because you went to school for 5 extra years hardly justifies that. The rest of the world does not compensate doctors in such a way and neither should we. It's a job and you should earn your money and quit complaining about compensation until you actually earn that additional value through innovation and expertise. You are no expert just out of school and should not be compensated as such.
Yeah, I wanted to respond, but it's not worth it.This is my favorite comment. The fact that I have also heard this from my friends and classmates deeply disturbs me.
This should be good.Doctors make absorbent amounts of money for the work they actually do.
A few years? Idiot. My friend will be a neurosurgeon when he's 38. College, med school, PhD, lengthy residency = a few years? And 5x more money? Compared to who? Not the average college graduate, that's for sure.So yes you have to sacrifice up front a few years to make 5 times the national wage average. Giving up 5-10 years for a 5x multiple in wage over your working life is a small sacrifice.
What other profession would be worthy?Nobody deserves to make 5, 10 or 20 times the national average on pay unless they are truly special and add considerable value to mankind. Just because you went to school for 5 extra years hardly justifies that.
What other profession would be worthy?
Man **** that comment. That person is an idiot. Why don't they go loud mouth about how A-Rod gets paid 25 million dollars a year for just playing freakin baseball. Or they should complain how some lawyers are getting paid millions for screwing ppl over. A physician saves your freakin life. It isn't just 5 years extra schooling, it is more like a decade of serious life or death training. Man, many people in this country takes healthcare for granted. In other parts of the world some people don't have access to a physician at all, and when they finally get the chance to see the doctor they have so much more respect for them. **** that guy, I can't wait till the doctor shortage occurs so that bastard could see exactly how important we are.
Ive talked to a few deans that think the Physician shortage is being blown out of proportion.
Plus on top of that...it costs alot of money to educate a medical student...I dont think most schools have the money to quadruple there class size.
our student tuition will cover it. and with each new student, they will only get more $$$ to 10X the class size. remember anything can be done if there is demand and will. nobody wants change. that's all
I believe the reason this won't occur truly is within the government. American society as a whole is pulling away from paying for any education, as is evident in almost all levels of public education being less funded. People are seeing less reason to pay taxes that would benefit grade schools/high schools/colleges or any level of education. Private colleges are the exception, but state schools need tons of cash infusion from states and governments to make the individual schools stay open. For schools to open up new spots, you would need one of a couple things. 1. High tuitioner. 2. More taxes. 3. cut in academic position pay or 4. cutting programs.
Besides this, I think general care is shifting towards mid-level care management any way.
our student tuition will cover it. and with each new student, they will only get more $$$ to 10X the class size. remember anything can be done if there is demand and will. nobody wants change. that's all
I believe it is slightly more complicated than that, but I'm no expert. Remember that there is a limited number of residency positions available, with each one requiring about 100k from the government. Schools can have 500 in each class if they wish, but the vast majority will sit the match out.
SO WTF DO THEY HIRE FMG residents? because our American government is willing to pay for a friggin foreiner to train here to cover the shortage. your statement CONTRADICTS itself.
I apologize that I upset you to this degree, perhaps I misunderstood your original argument. No matter where the medical students come from, there are only so many residency positions available. Yes, medical schools can quadruple their size and we can import thousands of FMGs, but until more residency positions are given proper funding, none of it will matter.
With less than half of applicants being accepted, I think maybe, just maybe, the reason for physician shortage has to do with the # of med schools rather than the malpractice insurance.
i stopped reading after the first paragraph.