INACCURATE TO JUST BLAME `MANAGED CARE CITY Edition

Prior to managed care there was a great deal of waste in health care. Putting patients through too many tests and procedures can be as detrimental as doing too little. Physicians and patients were insulated from this reality and therefore unaware of it. I believe it is a good thing for physicians to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Press Democrat
Main Author DR. JOSEPH V. COOK
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Santa Rosa, Calif Sonoma Media Investments, LLC 07.10.2000
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Summary:Prior to managed care there was a great deal of waste in health care. Putting patients through too many tests and procedures can be as detrimental as doing too little. Physicians and patients were insulated from this reality and therefore unaware of it. I believe it is a good thing for physicians to be cost-conscious. Doctors' efforts to control costs have been appropriate and commendable. Prior to managed care, there was no payment for wellness exams or preventive services, so fewer were provided. Now, it has been determined that preventive medicine is truly the best medicine. HMOs have the ability to improve the health of an entire population by promoting the use of such preventive tools as immunizations and mammography exams. In addition, there is a realization that a small number of conditions such as diabetes and asthma account for a large percentage of overall health care costs. Prevention in these areas is truly cost-effective and, more importantly, beneficial to a patient's quality of life.
ISSN:0747-220X