The following post represents my personal opinion and not that of any groups or organizations with which I am affiliated.

Okay, it’s enough already! Why is it that women are always the target? First it’s abortions, then mammograms, pap smears following closely, behind and now cosmetic surgery (although that’s not only women!) It looks like the Congress is desperate to find any savings anywhere. Why not tell it like it is, it’s raising taxes. Whether it is through so called elective procedures or levying taxes on devices and diagnostics, to be passed on to the patients, it’s a tax.

Instead of rewriting the rules on mammograms which will cost lives, maybe not that many, but if it is your life that’s all that matters and focusing on false positives and unnecessary screening, why not invest money in better mammograms that are more effective in identifying a lump or even distinguishing a fast growing one from a slow one. Taxing companies who make these diagnostics, while lowering reimbursement rates is not exactly a motivator for more research and innovation.

And by the way, these recommendations for mammograms are a classic example of “comparative effectiveness”, which it very well may be, but the reaction from the American public is an indication of how difficult cutting any services will be—not a great start. And no sooner does the US Preventive Services Task Force come out with recommendations then the Sec of HHS tell us to ignore them. Will private insurers ignore them?

Let’s talk about cosmetic surgery, according to the physician groups, in a survey done of people who are planning on having cosmetic surgery in the next two years, 60% reported a household income of $30K to $90K, 40% of the 60% reported incomes of $30K to $60K, this is the middle class and insurance does not pay for it. While some of the procedures may be considered elective by some, it is in the eye of the beholder and who is to make that distinction, the doctor, the patient or the government? Another bad idea.

Why are women being targeted? I thought this was all about giving women more access to health care, many of the changes in regulations are definitely positive, but what the government gives with one hand, it seems to take away with the other.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 23rd, 2009 at 1:05 pm and is filed under Health Reform, Women's Health. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.