Ask The Peoples Medical Society

This page is dedicated to you, the consumer. We invite you to ask us your questions about health care, getting the most for your medical dollar, where to turn for information about a certain condition--anything that will help you become a more educated health care consumer! We will try to answer everyone's questions. Just e-mail us at cbi@peoplesmed.org. Each month, a few select letters will be answered below. We hope you'll take advantage of this opportunity to learn more about your health and our health care system. We're eager to hear from you.

Q I’m very concerned that, as a country, we aren’t producing enough doctors. It seems every time you call a physician in my area you’re told, I’m sorry, the doctor isn’t accepting new patients." Doesn’t this indicate that we need about 150,000 new physicians?

D.E. R.

Arizona

A You raise a very interesting issue. It seems the profession can’t agree on the correct answer. Medical schools report fewer applicants which means fewer doctors. Yet, in some areas, doctors in certain practices aren’t able to find employment.

Rather than speculate on the exact number of physicians needed, it would seem the debate should be focused on the distribution of doctors. As with any other profession, doctors go where the money is. You’ll find plenty in metropolitan areas, but fewer in the hinterlands. American must face up to this maldistribution issues before we can determine if we have too many or too few doctors.

Q What is the People’s Medical Society doing about the pharmaceutical industry? The cost of prescription medications is getting beyond even those with a middle-class income. It seems that every time a new medication comes on the market, one pill costs from $5 to $10. This is outrageous. I know companies need to recoup development costs, but must they bankrupt consumers in the process?

L.G.

South Dakota

A You are not alone in questioning the tactics of the pharmaceutical industry. While many of their products have brought about better health, it has not been without substantial cost to the consumer.

As if to add insult to injury, pharmaceutical companies are now permitted to keep many of their brand name products on patent for an additional two or three years. A recent study by a Congressional committee found that extending patents for this additional time will cost consumers billions of dollars. The only way to combat this anti-consumer action is to band together and petition Congress for prescription medication price relief.

Q From time-to-time I’ve mentioned to my doctor that I belong to the People’s Medical Society. I’ve also told him that you’ve helped me learn more about being a savvy consumer and how to demand my medical rights. Would you believe he then asked me if the People’s Medical Society was a communist organization! Can you believe these guys?

T.R.J.

Georgia

A Yes, we can believe these guys and No, we aren’t a communist organization. In the early days of the People’s Medical Society, this charge was often made by the medical establishment because it thought consumers didn’t need anyone speaking for them. It was an attempt to discredit any consumer movement that didn’t view the medical establishment as the center of the universe. Over the years, we’ve shown doctors that an informed medical consumer can be an ally and that our goal is a better informed consumer. Needless to say, the more open minded doctors in practice now welcome highly informed and educated consumers. It has taken some time, but in the end, the consumer will once again be the focal point of health care.

Q In a recent issue of the Newsletter, you addressed this issue of a single-payer health system such as found in Canada. You also made a statement that the United States is a democracy. It’s not, its a Republic.

As far as a single-payer system, socialized medicine is not a cure-all for the problems of our health system. People tend to overuse health care when it doesn’t cost them anything and those who really need care are made to wait. I’ve read too many horror stories about the Canadian system to ever want it here in the U.S.

I generally agree with the positions of the People’s Medical Society, but I wish you would rethink your approach to solving the ongoing health care crisis in this country. Do you really believe a single-payer system run by the government would be a good thing?

O.H.

Wisconsin

A We stand corrected! A Republic it is.

I believe you are referring to a survey we completed several years ago where 57 percent of our members favor a single-payer system. We still believe that a single-payer system would work best for 99 percent of the population; however, we’re also realists. Given the political realities in Washington, we don’t expect the Bush Administration to propose any sweeping changes to the health care system.

At best, we’ll probably see some incremental changes such as a further expansion of the Children’s Health Insurance Program and perhaps an expansion of Medicaid eligibility. The best things we can do as individuals is to write our elected representatives and let them know that we want a reasoned and logical approach to reforming the health care system.