From: Gary S Smith, DPM
Dr. Jacobs has educated me for over 30 years via articles and seminars and now, I would like to educate him. There is no such thing as "rise in healthcare costs", only rise in healthcare insurance costs. Up until 1996, Medicare had a cost-of-living increase for healthcare providers built into it. Since then, not only have we not gotten a raise but have had our fees cut. Other insurances like Highmark, etc. cut how much we got paid for procedures 75% at the same time and have not raised it since. If any of us were greedy, we sure wouldn't still be doing this.
Doctors who are employees are totally clueless when it comes to what their services are worth because they are paid well regardless. They are not greedy as much as they are "influenced". Employed podiatrists don't work for the patient; they work for the healthcare entity. It is not their job to improve the patient's situation; it is their job to make that entity money. If they cured every patient in the world with cancer, they would still get fired if they didn't order enough tests, make enough referrals, or do enough procedures. Sadly, it is the future of healthcare and we all must deal with it.
Gary S Smith, DPM, Bradford, PA
