Don’t blame the doctors

An acerbic April 16 letter exposes an extreme naivete concerning health-care delivery. The writer expresses his gratitude for the benevolence of his wife’s dermatologist by implying that physicians’ greed is partly responsible for the high cost of health care. He further exposes his lack of awareness by asking when anyone last had free health care.

Has he ever heard of Surgery on Sunday? Far more common is the totally free or significantly discounted care dispensed by most physicians on a regular basis. Moreover, insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid dictate what percentage of a fee they pay and when they will pay it. Many of these are steeply discounted and often do not cover the actual cost of the services rendered.

I’m curious whether the writer, being uninsured, is breaking the federal law. Why did he not avail himself of the opportunity to sign up for the widely acclaimed and publicized Kynect? Actions speak more loudly than poorly thought out words.

This story was originally published May 4, 2016 at 7:38 PM with the headline "Don’t blame the doctors."