Newspapers / The Carolina Times (Durham, … / March 20, 1982, edition 1 / Page 19
Part of The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
The adverse publicity which the medical profes sion is receiving regarding its cost of care is very un fortunate. Doctors are not the enemy or are they solely responsible for the high cost of medical care. Doctors are the victims of inflation and rising cost,' just like every one else.wvU-,.. j-Iov much do doctor's make? Too much for some. However, the reality pef Medical Economics magazine is that in 80 the everage doctor made slightly under $65,000 per year for a sixty to eighty hour work week,' If one applied the ususal standard of time and a half for overtime, this means doctors would make $20.8$ per hour, on straight time for forty hours which would give them approximately $45,O0Q per year; Add in four years of medical school, now with tuitions of up to $10,000 per year; a minjmuin .ui uuc iu mice years c tuViirh 'residents ar unrWnaiH St. 1 .1 .l'j . J.! ...... .u. ,k9, Honors make, look at starting in pnvmc latutc may onng wun nimner , . inuw mat jum ........ -r---- . ; ' tin fVin in Pfliiratirmal riktc 1 tK ,ht rttWc in SOCietV maKC CaDinei OllJtCls. Spectacles: A Closer Look; , , , ; The High Cost of Medical Care " Part I - Do Doctors Make Too Much Money? ' By Ada M. Fisher SAT., MARCH 20, 1332 THE CAHSLiriATlS -11 maintenance run at a minimum approximately $500. per month. 7 he federal government's i for mula for calculating office expenses with the M.u. making $35,000 per year shows that $88,000 must i ,a tV, vrwn4 far office SD3CC. 1 iequipment, salaries, and supplies. On the basis or .'.1.. j - AV..,m cVitrorfin time time auoueu ior.scrviv.c usmw; for vacations, continuing education, professional meetings; etc,) $84hour must be produced. If four patients are to be seen, the average visit should cost, ot hraic vn and nav the ohvsician that; $35,000. To decrease the cost of a visit, one must ' ! : - . either see more patients per hour otxux back oae-; t be borne ' Lawyers with ten years of experience average up? vpen'scs' with-supplies being the first to experience become i ' wards of $50,000, Professional -ball players, who , . mM teaching hospitals or out-patient depart- ir years oi meaicai doctor ana to survive in mis malpractice onenicu.- ' ..-'" : , :.tii.iMti nyvr. mcms, n. v v..v . to $10,000 per year; ' society, one must seriously question whether the;rf sa.laPes foL?lftlf ?ZrZll WOWiZil your;visit may underwrite t s of a residency dur- , medical profession is as guilty as It has sometimesj 4 minimum $32,500year Jjm hospital's expenses, vand H and grossly over- been painted for its concern over fees.- - Sye;svTUlihm $40 000 hospital inCuM' " ' u th- aUprao HAr . F ... . $80,000; basketball players minimum,- iw.uuu ana fd,iiv vobr chvs aan sh .vvv,.--. K . , . AO AAA average Jis&.uuu; nocKey piayers average ivio,vw j i. n..nn. cm AAA Minv fans whn over $20,uw .in eaucationai debts. In the first year what otners -in society k " r ctaH a, ur :tc5 CL ' . " Tr t "n of practice a doctor can make $30,000-$40,000 per . federal judges, and high goyWnt offtoatart . think nothing of buymg ,$ MJtelk. at a 320, year from which educational ; debts, liability in- at $65, 000 and are asking for a raise $.000 per. vK,t fof,:the;doctor mHAnJ' France; professional dues (which can run wr I . vear ; n the new l tax loopholes voted in. f two.mies. where hargedMstht Wte.; . .Will lull rvu iwauiyi . : - , , ln,$60pair; Auto repair shops for charge $23h6ur. ' r"Cjro;eries1are put of sight. Primary and secondary . .teachers rnay reach .their; maximum which runs 1 $18,000-$25,000 per year after . a master's degree and five years of experience. So as you can see, at ! $15-$20, a routine office visit with a family doctor . is still a bargain., , . ,. . -C ' Why do doctor's charge so;muc.h Equipmentfor exam rooms,' lab's, etc.; Scan cost as much as' . : $55,000. One littte examining table runs as much as ACf CMAr..n1.e flAiiinmmt VtttV vn mfirp with . j. vmtkm vantM icitCiieu lung auer i lie equipiueTU is but-dafed and not the state of the art. The scissors -one can buy at Sears for. $2.50 when purchased from a medical supply house for operating use will hp tapped $25. One secretarvrecentionist. nurse and lab rerson can easily cost $25,000 per year in A View From Capitol Hill: t ' the Undersupply of Black Physicians Confronting By Gus Savage. , Member of Congress The onslaught of Reaganoniics in the health cire 1 step toward giving the problem the at'tention it war-. i j si i . . ... ... , LMnn uuUp 8 r'Kioori tKic month will be meetme I uvyiiiwui wi iwuuiiviiiiyo in tiiv llVftUll VHl y area has compounded an already critical problem lacing uiiv.kuiiiiuuiiiii an auuiis iiic nation; an undersupply of black physicians and little hope that more will be trained. Back in 1 970 a number of prestigious medical schools promised to strive to increase minority enrollment to twelve per cent, a level reflective of Ua 'naliAn'e minrtritir sVnii1'tin Ciaaa than however, they have managed to take giant steps WN ofin8 results 1 - IMMlHMMMMVMMHi DacKwaras. Consider: by 1980, of the 375,000 plus doctors in the U.S., only two per cent were black and more recently the Association of American Medical Col leges reported that new black enrollment in the na tions 126 medical schools has slipped from 6.6 per cent in 1981 to 6.2 per cent this year . Out of the 2,000 new seats in medical colleges, blacks secured eight. And moves are being made to reduce the 'number of medical school chairs from 17,000 to 14,000 because the Graduate Medical Education National Advisory Committee feels there will be a glut pf doctors by 1990 so fewer professionals need to be trained. V .,. This will have an adverse impact on blacks Who had more black doctors per' black citizen in 1935 . than today. While the black community is reeling from an array of chronic health problems such as an abnormal infant mortality rate, it would seem that the best direction to take would be to beef up the supply of black doctors who have normally practiced in inner cities Instead, the Reagan Ad ministration marches in the other direction. Not on ly is affirmative action being assaulted at every level, but fewer student loans are. being made available. Dr, C.H. Ruhe. seriipr vice : president for meaicai cuuciiiiuii iui iiic ruutuvan ivivuivai rants, blacks jn Chicago this month will be meeting with Dr. T. Fulop, director oi tne envision ui ucaun manpower development for the UN World Health UrganiiailUll. ni iaai, vvnvn y...K-. . - . '-.T. V j ' . ing made. Blacks here are no better off than their ; - salaries meaning some will be underpaid. These brothers and sisters in many underdeveloped coun- , ' people do not want to be paid in chickens or eggs, tries who are also lacking proper care and facilities. 4 rthey want cash money at the end of the month ii r..ii., intofinnnl cnntlioht An the issue : tint credit or to be naid when vou (the DatienO can nUUCIUIIY, ail iiuviiiwiuwi apu.,.e... - ------ - r - ' , - i get the money. Buildings or office space including menis,' the cost of care fs even more expensive since tne Stall serving you. me any lasses, whicn ine hospital incurs."." h ''--'l;- " Ideally yotir physician should post hisher fees so that vou may see what heshecharges '..before you engage hisher services.' If ypuf bill is not m line with youriexpections vand servlcesi feel 4frec to discuss kV jf you have to wait too Jong to see a doc 4 tor, feel you were rudely or impersonally handled, . didn't get your questions answered, or feel your care was less thari i optimal, Vyouf complaints are legitimate and understandable? Discuss it with the doctor first; if not satisfied, write letters to the 1 hospitals and jnedical societies involved to express ' your, dissatisfaction, The medical profession will hear you, so speak up. ; . By 1985 it is predicted that there will be suffiaent numbers of doctors to meet the needs of all, though this figure flagrantly ignores the fact that the number of black physicians will still be less than 3 , of the total number of doctors in the U.S.A. Black physicians need the middle and higher income black patients if they are to remain financially viable in the profession. If black physicians do not meet your expectations, let them' know cr tell the National Medical Association or Old .orih State Medical Society how you think your care can be improved. Tell the black physicians how they can serve you better. Please realize that as with all things costs will escalate and the Diack neaitn proiessionais arc o much a victim as you the people we hope to serve. AOciattoM'C tS;i!?Mm5BacWM 'ani 1 shut down pne OUl , OIr; every , iiuriccn mcuiuui i ;rhonl What is also disheartening -is the fact that the pool of eager young blacks ready to enter medical crhrtrtl with hicrhpr entrance exam scores is growing by leaps and bounds. .Yet, the level of admissions is. either stagnant or depressed for blacks. We must be; involved in a process that defgrmines whether we live or die. . Remedies have varied along with perceptions of the problem. One particularly encouraging sign deserves attention and praise. The governor of New York, Hugh Carey, plans to ask the legislature to withdraw a portion of state aid to medical schools that fail to adopt a workable plan to attract and re tain more black and Hispanic students. Black of ficials in New York were stunned by a recent report ; that said black and Hispanic enrollment in the state's medical schools has fallen by more than a . third in the last five years. Our black medical schools are doing more than their share to eradicate the undersupply of black doctors. (Out of the nation's 126 medical schools, thirty per cent of all black students are enrolled at three institutions ' Howard University, Meharry, ; ' and Morehouse and these schools are hurting for money.) We have waited too long for solutions. Direct ac tion is needed. Blacks must act to insure their own survival. We can no longer wait to cash in on hollow promises and meek assurances. We should support health care activists who are trying to direct more scholarships to black medical school students and monitor the enrollments of white medical schools (such as the. University of Chicago which only managed to enroll one black medical student last year despite the fact the university abuts the, largest concentration of middle class blacks in the ( W?f Ihese schools remain callpus toward the health care needs of the black community and hide under . the cloak of political conservatism now being wpven by the Reagan Administration, then, we should seek to establish medical schools where the need is the greatest: in our inner cities. As a first order oddiDH'E And bring your in decisions to us. We can even save you time in making up your mind We're trained to help you You cdon pock y ft utsw 'bhones OTcai seirvnces, 'bm.-vow bill heave vow Id hone irebaiired on ihe Plhioinie Mcart- ' " - decide thinas like oinid sdII hove timme Bew over ' if 34' to doypupp,9f' decide things like what phone styles and colors go best with the styles and colors of your home. LE. AUSTIN Editor-Publisher 1927-1971 , U8P8M1-38P1 5 PubHahid Miry nJlS . JimZ"T7.V... m it m?s. Durhim. MX. 27702-3829. Olfica toatid it 823 oia nmm l"'", CUtl Wi8t PW Wmm, m -r" V"" Volunw 60. Mumbir 11. ' t POSTMASTER: 8iod tddrwt etaiiOM I. THE CAROLINA TIMES, P.O. 8m 3825, Owhw. MX. 27702-8825. tiinerniPTiON KATES: 0n yttr. 811.00 (ptai 48c uitt tax lor NJth CnTi A MPI 39t. Pastil ngnlltloM REQUIRE - NATIONAL ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE: Amslgamitld rmlSn mt, n w.it urn stntt, New vwn. n York 10938. hHmSSm PubttiRM Aiucatioii, Nartk Cirptlm Black PubUthari AoSm'cxpriiiid by eokimnliU la thii nmipapar do not '. mcaitarlly rapraiint tbi doIIh d tbit Mwtpapar. -'t. l"i MipiP WILL NOT RE RESPONSIBLE tef tto rctwe d M A aallcltBd picture. - ; :::v , ' ' if; t V -, v lit I ,i- i v t X f ( hx t t4M3z? , hri IBBvfV;';7' ' rrf vf,-. '".'jj.iT. ;; V-'Y-'' ' 1 New location in Norfhgate Mall near Sears
The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
March 20, 1982, edition 1
19
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75