Good Question

So, your next logical question might be “Who are YOU to host this discussion?”

Good Question!

(I wish I had a good answer)

Actually, I do. I have been involved in healthcare administration for over 20 years. I am not a doctor (but I do play one on TV…) I do work with doctors (lots of doctors) in the administrative end of their practices. I have seen a lot of changes over the past 20+ years, and most of them have not been for the better.

I have worked as an independent consultant in the field of health insurance collections (i.e. trying to get insurance carriers to pay their claims) and I have also worked as a patient and physician advocate. As a self-employed person, I have paid for and administrated my company’s own healthcare plan, and I’ve watched my coverage decrease and my premiums increase. In other words, I have been in the belly of the beast, and I am slick with it’s putrid slime (my 11th grade English teacher would have loved that phrasing!).

OK, full disclosure here: My perspective on this issue is going to be slanted towards that of the “healthcare consumer” (we used to be called patients) and the “healthcare providers” (they used to be called Doctors). I have markedly less affinity towards the rest of the healthcare system (these players will be named later). My opponents in this discussion have the aforementioned lobbyists and Madison Avenue on their sides, not to mention a bevy of Spin Doctors that make James Carville look like a ran amateur. So lets call it an even match….

So, first question to all of you: Who do you blame for the ‘healthcare crisis? Greedy Doctors? Overly Needy Patients? (HINT: If you answered YES to either of these questions, you have fallen hook, line and sinker for the hype – but hey, don’t feel too bad about it – you have LOTS of company)

More on this later…

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