Twice in the last few months I've read anecdotal evidence of fewer patients seeking health care.
I think David Limbaugh wrote an essay on that, but I can't find the link.
Anyway, can I toss one more anecdote on the fire?
I'm an old guy, and I've been doing my laundry the same day and the same time for many years.
The laundry room of my apartment house looks out on the parking lot of a large neighborhood clinic run by a large local hospital.
For at least 8 years, the lot has been completely full between 3PM and 4:30PM.
Within the last two months, I suddenly realized there are many empty spaces at 3PM, and the lot is half empty at 4:30PM.
Obviously, there can be many explanations for this besides ObamaCare.
But I do wonder - has anyone else here seen evidence that the number of patients is going down?
When obamacare first passed my cardiologist at the time had three partners and a fairly big clinic. He told me they figured out they would have to increase their number of patients by a third to make the same amount of money. A few months later I started using the VA and about a month after that I got a letter that their office was closing and he went back to working for a hospital.
Anecdotal evidence from my own little world of keeping stats for clinics and hospitals is that I find volume has been decreasing since 2010. As to why I can only guess that overall increases in costs of premiums, copays, deductibles plus ever tightening provider network selections are fueling the decline, even before the ACA.
Over thirty some years I also have observed an inverse relationship with the economy and medical volume. Recession equals high medical volume, while even slight improvement in the economy brings lower volume.
Fewer patients??? This is definitely not happening now. A friend in California taking care of someone with health problems reports that there is suddenly a half-day wait for lab work and an hours-long wait at the pharmacy. The patient’s health-care provider is no longer taking new Medicaid patients—totally overwhelmed.
Alinsky & Co. couldn’t see this? That the people who really needed health care already had it? That when you give it away for free, everyone suddenly has an ailment and the system is dragged under?
Of course they did.
We may be seeing the same thing on my side of the state.
Last week I helped a friend of mine enroll in Washington Apple Health. I visited Tri-Cities Community Health Clinic (Richland) to pick up a form. There was only one patient in the waiting room, at what would have seemed a prime time for appointments. I have noticed few cars in the parking lot at other times and little activity around the entrance. One thing I can say for sure is that the flood of new Expanded Medicaid patients seeking appointments hasn't materialized over here. Lots of people in the county have signed up -- but evidently aren't seeking many appointments even when free. Pregnant women would be an exception.