I read the links you posted. It says USF pulled out because they didn't make the money they thought they would.

Lowenkron's sued for money that his contract said was his according to your link. That was a year's salary at USF. He must be a smart fellow.

I think what you're seeing at Villages Health is a continuation of what transpired with Moffitt and USF. Both had a plan that anticipated a certain percentage of their patients being enrolled in a MA plan. When they realized that was not obtainable, they pulled the plug. VHS has the same problem. With the limits on panel size, there is insufficient income to sustain the plan without the annual allowance paid per member. Therefore, the decision was made to make the UHC plan a requirement. Apparently, the whole system was in jeopardy if they didn't.

Indeed things do change, and often not for the better. In ancient times when I became a physician, many of the arrangements and relationships so common today would have been considered gross violations of medical ethics. Upon graduation, I took an oath to always put the health needs of my patients first; before personal comfort and convenience, before any financial considerations, and even before the needs of family and spouse. I can recall over the years many a time Thanksgiving or Christmas festivities were interrupted because I was called in to care for someone needing urgent surgery. I was not allowed to know what type of insurance plan they had, or whether they had any insurance coverage at all. I just went in and took care of the situation whatever it might have involved.
So back to the present. As a retired physician I know the difference between good medical care and not so good. Over the past several years I was quite satisfied with the care rendered by my primary care MDs at The Villages Health. But last year when my wife required serious back surgery, I wanted it to be done by the best back surgeon I could find. I did not want my choices to be limited to those having some sort of contractual or network connection to TVH. Because we had original Medicare plus a BC/BS supplement, I was able to choose practically whomever I wanted. So I did. And the operation was a great success.
For this reason we desire to keep our current insurance status and so will be forced to seek new primary care doctors. And I'm not too happy about it. Hoping the whole United Healthcare arrangement goes belly up and the Morse family is stuck with many fancy, new, but empty medical office buildings.

An excellent post, made even more compelling by your own personal experience and knowledge. :thumbup:

You seem to have lived the 'Marcus Welby, M.D.' creed...instead of just spouting it.

Good for you. :coolsmiley:

Thank you for this excellent post. You sound like many of the physicians I worked with over my long career as a Registered Nurse. Many a holiday or weekend I would need to call in the OR for a surgery that could not wait. Snow storms and ice on the road did not matter. That OR team would come. This is the level of dedication I expected from TVH. Dedication to the health care of a senior population. What a foolish old nurse was I. I will begin to search for another doctor. But I know I will not find the likes of you sir.

Nor will too many be able to find a nurse as great as yourself.

You have my utmost admiration. :ho:

Your sarcasm is less than appreciated regarding a subject that affects many of us so deeply. There is a level of dedication in health care that is required, that obviously TVH does not possess. This event casts a dark cloud over this community and the powers that be.

There is a dark cloud over this community. The Villages Health Care's decision to accept only one Medicare insurance plan and reject all others has stirred up the beginnings of a tremendous storm. Many people I talk to are are very angry and disappointed. I know I am.

Sorry, but after a long career as a nurse , you of all people, more than most, SHOULD appreciate my "sarcasm". Like you, there were many late nights and holidays that I had to go to the ER at 3 AM to admit a patient in a blizzard. It did not matter who it was; one time it was the mayor, the next an inmate from the state prison. Ability to pay, insurance, or social status did not matter. You, I, and the retired surgeon above share many of the same experiences and same level of dedication.

Perhaps I was not clear in my prior posts.
Like everyone else, I have to make the same decision as to keeping medicare with supplement or changing to TV UHC advantage plan. I disagree with the decision to limit their patient panel to a single insurance as well, but it is their decision to make.

My problem with many of the posts , including yours, is that the blame for this ADMINISTRATIVE decision is being put on employee physicians who had no part in the decision, and then are being labelled as "uncaring", "greedy" and now apparently "undedicated". I don't understand how anyone can come to that conclusion. Are the nurses and nurse practitioners "uncaring", "greedy" and "undedicated" as well???? They are part of the same system, and had just as little to do with this decision as the doctors.
My doctor at TVH and I practiced together for 30 years. He was my patient for 30 years, now I am his. He was right there at 3 AM, at 20 below zero, admitting the same inmates and mayors that I was. I respect your dedication, please do not question his, nor anyone else who had no part in this decision.

PS. I didn't see a response regarding the letter you received.

Better read the first article again. Read paragraph 3 in the first article which states there are concerns "that the same doctor (Lowenkron)who presided over the start and end of the university's venture is now working for the Villages Health."

Lowenkron ran a failed business plan that cost his employer over $5 million. USF pulled out because it was a money losing plan, to the tune of a $2 million loss, that Lowenkron presided over while at USF.

Further in the article it mentions Dr Elliot Susan, now also employed by Villages Health, as a paid consultant on the Villages USF project. Guess his work as a consultant on a failed business plan made him another prime candidate for employment in The Villages health system.

No doubt, not one but two "smart fellows"!

My Doctor is getting 15 requests a day for appointments for new folks looking for a doctor. They are scheduling appointments into December.

It appears that about 30% of Medicare eligible people enroll in a Medicare Advantage Plan. I have no idea how that relates to The Villages Health but I thought I would share it.

My wife Has recently contacted a rare form of cancer. She will be 65 next month. As a patient of Colony Healthcare she is being dumped on July31. Although she love her colony Doctor has been great in helping us,however now we desperately need a general Physican. We are also working with the Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins medical people. My issue is United health cares advange program is useless to us for inurance and the developer has lied to us. I will eber trust anything these two enties say again.

Village Health
 

:swear:

I do not blame the stuff physicians at all. I don't think I said that. I blame the powers that be that made a promise they did not keep. In health care we must go the extra mile. I believe most feel let down. Some one noted in a recent post that they will never believe anything here again. I still feel that TVH should have honored those that are already their patients and grandfathered them in. From here on in United. Regarding the letter it just stated that there was a plan for a change in health care providers, but we would be grandfathered. No contract. Just their good word. Like I said,I'm a foolish old nurse who thought I was dealing with people who kept their word.

So in your nursing career, your employers NEVER changed accepted insurances? That is very rare. I've never actually ever heard of that before.

Everyone mentions this "grandfather" clause but I have yet to see a copy of the letter promising that. Can't imagine all the people who claim to have been TOLD they were grandfathered and not one asked for it in writing.

In that case, my apologies. If you review the posts on the 6 or 7 threads that have been covering this topic, I'll think you'll find more than a few references to the physicians being "greedy" and "uncaring", which is way out of line, especially since I have known 2 of them for 30 years. Is TVH administration greedy and uncaring? Maybe, but how many businesses aren't? Like many, I disagree with their decision, especially the part that does not grandfather existing patients. Let's face it, if they take the long view, in 20 or 30 years they won't have to deal with those of us with traditional Medicare, myself included. I also think this was a horrible time for them to make such a huge decision, given that national healthcare policy might take a drastic about face come Jan 20,2017. They are taking a calculated financial risk, but I'm sure they looked at it thoroughly. I'm equally sure UHC did not get exclusivity and the use of the trademarked "The Villages" name without paying a significant royalty, which would limit their risk.

If everyone mentions it maybe it is true. Sorry to bother you with our concerns. You are obviously not affected by this major insurance change. This is not a case of a medical practice not accepting one or two insurance plans for its over 65 Medicare population, but this practice is rejecting all Medicare plans except the United Health Care Advantage plan. That is a huge change and highly disruptive to the over 14,000 patients of TVH who recently received their "Dear John letters."

There is not some magical bottomless pot of money to spread over every new turn and twist in the new world of medical economics created by our Dear Leaders in Washington because they know best .

My guess would be that it must be a nightmare to be the Chief Financial Office of such a practice as The Villages Health Care System .

I doubt that they have done anything to be sinister , sneaky , or mean-spirited .

The majority allowed Washington to take over the entire health care system and now we get to deal with how ineffective government is when it enters what should be left to the workings of free enterprise .
Elections have consequences . The government officials are not our parents . They can`t come close to balancing the Federal Budget so why do you think that they would do an excellent job with the Health care System .

Please post a copy of that letter that promised you would be "grandfathered". Proof of that would go a long way to making some of these claims believable. So far, NO ONE has provided anything that verifies these claims.