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    December 13, 2019
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Business Insight Medical Commercials I am amazed every day how much of cable TV time is purchased by various institutions in the medical field. New medicines, insurance companies, substitutes for Medicare, hospitals and clinics-all of those combined spend millions of dollars to show their faces on TV and attract new users. And who are new users, you would ask. Let's agree, they are people who are sick or have sick family members and they seek the most optimal treatment or coverage for the treatment. In other words, all of our medical care became commercialized, kind of like a new model of Ford. The difference is such that when buying a car, you look for new models and a shiny surface, and reliable engine, and excitement of fast ride. When you are sick, you do not care. You just want to get better. And often, it is a matter of life and death, quality of life, and ability to take care of yourself or your family. You have no choice-someone got sick. When we go to a doctor or emergency room, we do not want the services delivered to us to be compared to a new Ford or the best apples. We want the services to save our lives, make our pain go away, or simply get us well. Don't you think that all hospitals and all doctors, and all other providers should be able to serve us like that? With no commercials? Why would they spend thousands of dollars to tell us that they will save our life? Isn't it exactly what we expect from them in the first place? Why would the insurance company assure the customers that they will cover medical services? This is exactly why they exist and we pay their premiums. So where do they get millions for commercials on a prime cable TV, ten times a day, for many weeks? Is it coming from our premiums? Recently, the proposed a disclosure of hospital pricing for the most common procedures. Such a disclosure could provide crucial information about inequality of local services and overbilling for them. Certainly, some differences are expected but, as it was identified, gallbladder removal can cost from $10,000 to $55,000, depending where it is handled. And we are not discussing any complications in procedures or health outcomes. What is amazing is that the hospitals and other institutions decided to sue the federal administration for this action requesting disclosures. They do not want to make their pricing public and consider it a part of the privacy of individual contracts between the hospitals and insurance industry. So, I guess, lawyers will make some money off this action t00. Where will the hospital take that legal money from? And why, why is it that we cannot know the price ahead of time rather than receive a shocking number on a bill later? Commercialization and profit gaining from our lives and health are not the most effective and ethical way of dealing with healthcare. Commercials of new drugs mislead may patients who are not familiar with specific language terms. I cannot tell you how many times my research team had to explain to our patients that no, you will more than likely die from a car crash than from cancer mentioned in the commercials of many drugs we develop. And what does it mean that you will clear your skin by 75%? Instead of commercials we need more community education. We need true community advocates and advisors who can visit senior centers and explain benefits to new Medicare recipients rather than sell them a new insurance plan. We are where we are as a society, with our healthcare drama, not because we do not have good doctors but because we commercialized healthcare like a car dealership. Would you entrust your life and health to a car dealer? Michael Bukhalo, MD federal administration Arlington Dermatology 5301 Keystone Court Rolling Meadows, IL 60008 Tel. 847 392 5440 | www.arlingtondermatology.net Business Insight Medical Commercials I am amazed every day how much of cable TV time is purchased by various institutions in the medical field. New medicines, insurance companies, substitutes for Medicare, hospitals and clinics-all of those combined spend millions of dollars to show their faces on TV and attract new users. And who are new users, you would ask. Let's agree, they are people who are sick or have sick family members and they seek the most optimal treatment or coverage for the treatment. In other words, all of our medical care became commercialized, kind of like a new model of Ford. The difference is such that when buying a car, you look for new models and a shiny surface, and reliable engine, and excitement of fast ride. When you are sick, you do not care. You just want to get better. And often, it is a matter of life and death, quality of life, and ability to take care of yourself or your family. You have no choice-someone got sick. When we go to a doctor or emergency room, we do not want the services delivered to us to be compared to a new Ford or the best apples. We want the services to save our lives, make our pain go away, or simply get us well. Don't you think that all hospitals and all doctors, and all other providers should be able to serve us like that? With no commercials? Why would they spend thousands of dollars to tell us that they will save our life? Isn't it exactly what we expect from them in the first place? Why would the insurance company assure the customers that they will cover medical services? This is exactly why they exist and we pay their premiums. So where do they get millions for commercials on a prime cable TV, ten times a day, for many weeks? Is it coming from our premiums? Recently, the proposed a disclosure of hospital pricing for the most common procedures. Such a disclosure could provide crucial information about inequality of local services and overbilling for them. Certainly, some differences are expected but, as it was identified, gallbladder removal can cost from $10,000 to $55,000, depending where it is handled. And we are not discussing any complications in procedures or health outcomes. What is amazing is that the hospitals and other institutions decided to sue the federal administration for this action requesting disclosures. They do not want to make their pricing public and consider it a part of the privacy of individual contracts between the hospitals and insurance industry. So, I guess, lawyers will make some money off this action t00. Where will the hospital take that legal money from? And why, why is it that we cannot know the price ahead of time rather than receive a shocking number on a bill later? Commercialization and profit gaining from our lives and health are not the most effective and ethical way of dealing with healthcare. Commercials of new drugs mislead may patients who are not familiar with specific language terms. I cannot tell you how many times my research team had to explain to our patients that no, you will more than likely die from a car crash than from cancer mentioned in the commercials of many drugs we develop. And what does it mean that you will clear your skin by 75%? Instead of commercials we need more community education. We need true community advocates and advisors who can visit senior centers and explain benefits to new Medicare recipients rather than sell them a new insurance plan. We are where we are as a society, with our healthcare drama, not because we do not have good doctors but because we commercialized healthcare like a car dealership. Would you entrust your life and health to a car dealer? Michael Bukhalo, MD federal administration Arlington Dermatology 5301 Keystone Court Rolling Meadows, IL 60008 Tel. 847 392 5440 | www.arlingtondermatology.net