Let doctors get reimbursed for phone, internet and video conference consultations. Right now under most insurance plans, a doctor only gets paid by the insurance company if the patient comes to the office. With video conferencing and our ability to do many tests ourselves at home, many of these consultations can be done over the phone at a far lower cost.
For example, a patient with a high red blood cell count that periodically needs to have blood removed to reduce the viscosity of her blood stream could measure her own red blood count at home and schedule a phlebotomy (yes – bloodletting has a beneficial effect for a few patients) when the RBC reaches a certain level. Today, the patient visits the doctor too often and this uses resources (office space, nursing, administrative staff, and the insurance company resources) more often than needed.
No big government agency is needed for this change so the central planners won’t like the idea. The socialists want to take care of you rather than you playing a major role in managing your own health and finding ways to keep the price affordable.
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