I visited the Cardiologist today and here is a letter all should read and be upset about: There are probably about 8-10 cardiologists in this practise so it is not a small problem to The Villages Community..!!
"The 2010 Medicare Fee Schedule mandates that on January 1, 2010 severe cuts in cardiology physician fees will begin. This cut is being phased in over four years because the government used flawed data to make their calculations. In addition, there are Congressionally mandated cuts of more than 20 percent in all Medicare physicians fees, regardless of specialty. The results of these combined government policies are that our practice is facing cuts ranging from 25 to almost 50 percent.
Such drastic reductions in fees are going to seriously hamper our ability to continue to see you, our patients as we do today. We feel the need to warn you that these reductions will translate into decreased services for patients, cuts in staff, probable transfer of care to the hospitals resulting in delay in needed care. Please understand the hospitals cannot handle the mass influx of patients who will be needing services thar they once received in our office. Making sure you have the best quality of care will always be our number one priority. Caring for people is why we all dedicated our lives to heart patients. In the very near future it is going to be a difficult climate
to operate in our current manner.
We have built our office facility and trained our staff to best take care of each patient. We believe that the care you receive is critical to your quality of life. With these cuts we may not be able to provide some of the services that patients have come to depend on and in the long run; if the current policies are not changed we may be forced to close our doors.
As a cardiovascular patient we urge you to contact our lawmakers about the impact of our changing practice on you. The law is clear-we face cuts unless Congress acts. In advance we thank you for understnding our changing environment."
There are other facts to follow..

In addition to the previous post this should also be taken as the pill that Congress wants you to swollow:
"The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Serivces (CMS) has proposed drastic cuts in the reimbursement for out-patient imaging procedures including nuclear stress tests. CAT/MRI scans and cardiac catheterizations procedures. These cuts will financially paralyze the office of your cardiologists and many of them will be forced not only refuse Medicare patients, but also leave the state of Florida altogether.
Your access to healthcare, especially cardiovascular care will be severely limited and this rationing of health care forced upon you by the Medicare cuts will leave you with no other alterative but to go to the hospital for any and all of your health care. This will lead to:
-Increased out of pocket expense for you, since your co pay for procedures will be more than 5 times compared ot office procedures.
-Increased wait times for procedures to be scheduuled.
-Increased length of stay in the hospital which will again increase the hospital expenses and your co pay.
There are only about 850 cardiologists currently practicing full time in Florida. If Medicare cuts come into effect, many of these skilled and knowledgeable cardiologists will leave the state altogether and the access to specialists will be limited and the quality of your health care will be severely compromised.
These Medicare cuts are going to completely criple your cardivascular services as well as other specialties and severely affect your healthcare.
We need you to stand with us to prevent these dreatic measures...."
If not now...when? If not us...Who..? Contact your repreentative and stop this erosion of skilled medical treatments.
The consequences sound a lot like the UK..!!

And I took the time to read this bill from end to end. Now I know it has morphed some since then, but this is just the beginning. They are cutting the services to seniors to provide for those without insurance. 400 billion from Medicare,(eliminate the fraud and waste) to pay for illegals and other who can't afford insurance. But if there is 400 billion in fraud with this program, why wouldn't there be 800 billion with this new bill? They have admitted that government programs are a failure and yet want us to accept more. And we the sheep, accept it.

This is a serious subject, but no one knows for sure what the Health Care bill will look like when it's finished. This is another wave of political negativism (remember the August Town Hall Meetings) meant to stagnate Healthcare reform and IT BELONGS IN THE POLITICAL TALK FORUM. Please don't be a part of the political hack efforts.

Originally Posted by Xavier

This is a serious subject, but no one knows for sure what the Health Care bill will look like when it's finished. This is another wave of political negativism (remember the August Town Hall Meetings) meant to stagnate Healthcare reform and IT BELONGS IN THE POLITICAL TALK FORUM. Please don't be a part of the political hack efforts.

Thank you, X!!

Just vote in an admendment making everyone in political office no exceptions having to use only medicare!

There is nothing political about having your benefits halved. Some of you just do not understand, or cannot comprehend what is going to happen to us Senior Citizens under this proposed Health Care bill that Congress and Obama want passed so hurriedly, and I feel sorry for those of you who supported blindly these people into office. Canada, the U.K. and all other countries that use this social form of medicine have been crying for years. It's okay if you are young and not facing the health perils that we seniors face now. This is the result of a system gone wild, and we are the ones who are going to suffer dreadfully I fear.

Originally Posted by GatbTester

There is nothing political about having your benefits halved. Some of you just do not understand, or cannot comprehend what is going to happen to us Senior Citizens under this proposed Health Care bill that Congress and Obama want passed so hurriedly, and I feel sorry for those of you who supported blindly these people into office. Canada, the U.K. and all other countries that use this social form of medicine have been crying for years. It's okay if you are young and not facing the health perils that we seniors face now. This is the result of a system gone wild, and we are the ones who are going to suffer dreadfully I fear.

I would love for you to teach us uneducated souls just what it is that we don't understand or what it is that we can't comprehend - IN THE POLITICAL FORUM. I just don't know how I got so stupid. Maybe you can help me with that too. Me thinks that you may be caught up in the "talking points" of the day or believing all of the garbage that we get through our email or on faux (FOX) news network.

Please look at the thread category of "Medical" where it was posted and where I believe it belongs. It is a subject that is critical to every Senior citizen regarding their medical protection and it should not be hidden by some discussion regarding the differences between democrats and republicans.
I am sorry some feel it necessary to pretend being "intellectual" as opposed to concentrating on serious matters. Unfortunately, at time these attempts
at being "cute" actually confuse what would otherwise be considered very serious impacts on the quality of life.

Originally Posted by REH7380

Please look at the thread category of "Medical" where it was posted and where I believe it belongs. It is a subject that is critical to every Senior citizen regarding their medical protection and it should not be hidden by some discussion regarding the differences between democrats and republicans.
I am sorry some feel it necessary to pretend being "intellectual" as opposed to concentrating on serious matters. Unfortunately, at time these attempts
at being "cute" actually confuse what would otherwise be considered very serious impacts on the quality of life.

I thank you for pointing out yet another of my short-comings. Even my wife will tell you I'm not cute. Can't you see that YOU are being USED by yet another Special Interest Group and they've bought and sold many of the members of congress on both sides of the healthcare reform issue. They are trying to influence the rest through you. I still think it belongs in Political.

See, in short order, unfortunately this has turned personal AND political.

As Xavier initially indicated, this belongs in Political. It's much more than a Medical discussion.

I think it is a cross over post. Many members do not register for the political forum and would miss the cuts in Medicare that this post is talking about.

It only gets political when posters start slamming each other about the posts.

Originally Posted by REH7380

I visited the Cardiologist today and here is a letter all should read and be upset about:

Was this letter provided by your cardiologist? Can you tell us which office provided it?

Unfortunately, there is NO cure for ignorance.

Hey, it was an attempt to make sure all are informed regarding medicare and risks associated with the program. . If anyone elects to opt out so be it. I just don't think it is "right" to trivialize what may be a serious impact on medical care for senior citizens. It was not and is not political. It only becomes political when someone makes an attempt to "politicalize" everything in order to be argumentative or for whatever other motivation they may have. When the process is attacked as opposed to the substance it is time to just walk away and let the facts speak for themselves.