Lets examine a small town General Practitioner. What is the cost of doing his or her business? Well the first and arguably the most relevant expense of the business, is the repayment of any financial aid incurred during their educational experience. After that, you would have expenses related to physical property, equipment and staffing. 

Rent or mortgage payments are fixed and predictable for budgetary purposes, and essential for the purpose of receiving patients, they have to have a location to be seen. As a matter of good business practice, the doctor would have in place insurance against loss for the physical property and contents, most particularly any equipment needed in the daily conduct of his or her business. Medical equipment is generally quite expensive, and replacement cost is high, so it stands to reason that a doctor’s business & property insurance would be higher than that of the rest of the practicing professionals on Main Street. 

So far, I do not see much out of the ordinary and therefore no need to intervene on the doctor’s behalf to help reduce his costs. The educational experience has prepared him; they have hung their shingle, and are now ready to begin receiving patients. This is where the costs begin to spiral out of control.

Staffing for the practice requires much more than the commitment to the hourly wage of the individual staff member. One third to one half of the hourly rate of an individual is additionally required to satisfy local, state and federal government taxes. (Looks like an opportunity for savings to me) Another area of concern is that the staff are not usually primarily involved in the management of patient care and record keeping, but they are mostly involved in activities that ensure compliance with a staggering list of government mandated regulation. The implication here is that in an effort to ensure “fairness” government intrusion in private business has compromised the mission of the caregiver.

Now the first patient has arrived, but is the doctor ready to discuss & evaluate the problem? No. What if there is some real or perceived mistake made? Risk management requires malpractice insurance. I wonder why it costs so much? Hmmmm…..

Wake up and get real.