I testified before Congress in June to provide a practicing physician’s perspective on health care legislation. The legislation would change our nation’s medical care system in dramatic ways. And, I believe, the cost would be enormous and the purported benefits are suspect.

That said, the Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) — which represents a diverse mix of thousands of physicians from across the state — believes that ensuring a patient’s right to enter into a private contractual agreement with their physician is the single most important step that lawmakers can take to reform the country’s health care system. And we are not alone. MAG was part of a coalition of 20 state medical and specialty societies representing more than 100,000 physicians that sponsored a resolution at the annual American Medical Association meeting in June that solidified a patient’s right to privately contract with his or her physician as an AMA priority.

Given this freedom, every patient would literally have access to every doctor. Those same patients could negotiate fees for their care on an individual basis. Doctors, meanwhile, would have the discretion to charge their full fee, a reduced fee or no fee at all based on individual circumstances — an option that is actually prohibited under the existing Medicare and Medicaid programs. This option would be forbidden altogether if the aforementioned legislation becomes law. Unfortunately, this kind of restriction reduces the access that patients have to medical care.

With private contracting, a patient’s unique health insurance coverage circumstances serves as the basis for the negotiation between the patient and the physician. Importantly, individual patients get to decide on the medical care that’s best for them and their families. Medical decisions should be made by a patient in concert with their physician — not by the federal government, which already has too much power given its role as the single largest payer of medical care.

Private contracting will promote transparency, accountability and cost control at the individual level. And given a greater personal stake, patients will be vigilant when it comes to detecting and preventing fraud and abuse.

This approach will additionally enhance access to medical care because every patient will have access to every doctor, keeping in mind that many physicians opt out of government-run health care plans because the pay simply does not cover the cost of the care. No one in any profession should be expected to operate at a loss, including physicians.

Full story