[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by Mrs. Robinson

I will always thank someone who can educate me because I know I don't know everything! I don't mind being "bashed" when I am factually informed. It is when someone who can't spell, can't punctuate and doesn't know the essence of grammar, thinks they know a lot because they just looked it up, bashes me. I don't have the need to be "Miss Goody Two Shoes" and liked by everyone. Eventually, others see through that cloud.

By the way, did you ever think about Googling that person, since you do know his name. You might find some interesting reading material!

On a serious note -- thanks again!

YW. I think I made a new friend!

Originally Posted by spring_chicken

I don't like it either. Never understood some people's need to hijack and derail a thread so that they can insert slander and innuendo against someone they've probably never met.
The thread is about concierge medical care. Don't want it? Don't like it? Don't do it!

Perfectly said, CFRANCE and Spring_Chicken.

Dr. Martinez-Cruz is an excellent doctor. I mean EXCELLENT. I will compare him to ANY board certified doctor in the area and he will definitely come out on top. There is no question to his on-target expertise.

[Quixote]

Originally Posted by dbussone

I had an exceptional internist when we lived in Las Vegas. After several years he joined a concierge plan. It cost each of us $1500 per year and was worth every penny. As I said he was an exceptional doc. I'm comfortable selecting physicians.

Originally Posted by Mrs. Robinson

The doctor is Dr. Martinez Cruz and I feel confident saying you will not find a better internist in the area. He is an excellent diagnostician and takes the time to listen to you. That $500 is money well spent!

Originally Posted by Bay Kid

I pay $1,800. per year for EACH of my parents for their doctor in VA. Worth every penny. They are seen when needed and never any waiting.

Originally Posted by Jeff Hirsch

We had a concierge practice in Delaware and loved it. The fee generally provides you access. You can get in quickly and the doctor spends more time with you. Services were changed to insurance so we had no other out of pocket expense.

Originally Posted by Annie01

yes...boston and maimi also do it..my doc is fantastic and does the $500....BUT i can e mail him any time and he gets back to me...will send in for a prescription for me without going in...even on vacation he will get back to me...DOES YOUR DOC do that???? NO... the dr. next dor to him charges $1000.00 and YOU do the insurance papers yourself..(not e mail guy) my doc is the best and worth every penny...most of the dr will be doing this THANKS to YOUR obamacare..where the insurance guys are NOT paying the doc..hasseling them etc... BLAME THE INSURANCE people NOT the doc....they won.t even pay for some normal visits..... the doc s have to do this...or they close up....my doc will take me ANYTIME for whatever reason....love the guy....DR CRUZ he has helped me thru a lot.....

Originally Posted by DigitalGranny

We had one of those doctors in Ohio. They are screened to be among the best by the firm called MDVIP out of Boca Raton. The closest one to The Villages is 50 miles away. I miss the personalized care and excellent coordination with our specialists. The fee you pay is for your executive type physical exam and health screenings each year. You get your doctor's cell phone number. He takes your calls and knows you!. Worth every cent!. They take Medicare and private insurance.

I use Dr. Martinez-Cruz for primary care, formerly connected with Harvard Medical School and returning there for an annual conference there for updates in the field of primary care. Besides knowledgeable, he is personable and a great listener. He is a sole practitioner, not beholden to the corporate world that so many physicians are now affiliating themselves with (out of necessity, unfortunately). So far, two of my specialists have praised his move to this membership structure, which is more and more becoming "the wave of the present" in today's world of medical care delivery.

I guess the people who find value in Dr. Martinez-Cruz's membership plan are some of those who have been patients of his for a long time and know the quality of doctor he is (which is my case), or those who have had positive experiences with membership practices in other regions of the country where they're more prevalent.

I absolutely agree on the issue of health insurance. This all started after World War II, when employers began offering this as a benefit, and with the passage of time, this for-profit insurance industry represents a pretty big lobby in DC. Fast forward several decades, and these companies now have the control over which medical services we can receive—and which not. And IMHO it's only going to get worse.

As far as lack of board certification is concerned, at one point I used such a specialist who did excellent work—but as a patient I had no way of knowing that this doctor would never consider closing his office for a week to attend a medical conference to learn about new developments in the field. Why not? Maybe loss of income for those few days? I don't know.... Subsequently I used a young doctor with the same specialty who did not have board certification but is current on such new developments, and suddenly I had more viable options that continue to work a whole lot better. I realize that we can't generalize based on a single experience; it's enough to know that, as one poster put it, we choose our doctors based on the criteria that are important to us individually.

Originally Posted by CFrance

I don't like it when people make passive-aggressive insinuations that could damage someone's reputation without supplying facts. Show me the facts. Name the doctor you're referring to.

The Dr. Martinez Cruz I go to has a clean, well-furnished office, a great staff, and the medical knowledge to early diagnose a strange condition in one of my relatives that saved him from extensive organ damage. He has worked at Mass General and seen everything that's come down the pike.

You just talked me into paying the $500/year to stay with him.

Originally Posted by spring_chicken

I don't like it either. Never understood some people's need to hijack and derail a thread so that they can insert slander and innuendo against someone they've probably never met. The thread is about concierge medical care. Don't want it? Don't like it? Don't do it!

Originally Posted by Kup Kake

Perfectly said, CFRANCE and Spring_Chicken.

Dr. Martinez-Cruz is an excellent doctor. I mean EXCELLENT. I will compare him to ANY board certified doctor in the area and he will definitely come out on top. There is no question to his on-target expertise.

I could not agree more about those posters who go off topic, in this case to focus on issues that have nothing to do with either the general subject of concierge practice as a business model or specifically Dr. Martinez-Cruz's medical capabilities. Then again, everyone has an agenda....