—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 29, 1975
18
27% of Doctors Say They Won’t Practice Under Nat’l Medicine
The results of a survey
taken by “Private Prac
tice," a medical journal, and
published in its March issue
may contain some startling
medical news. Asking its
physician-readers their
opinions on National Health
Insurance, the magazine
came up with some answers
that may cause the
Congressional proponents of
NHTto have second thoughts
about the wisdom of this
controversial national
program.
The survey showed that
197,480 doctors oppose
National Health Insurance
and that 57,820 doctors will
.refuse to practice under
nationalized medicine. It
also shows that 20,237 doc
tors of all ages will retire
rather than practice under
NHI, and that 37,583 doctors
will continue to care for non-
NHI patients, or will give up
medicine and seek some
other kind of work, or will
enter full-time medical work
not involving responsibility
for patient care.
The magazine took the
survey because it doubted a
poll made in fall, 1974 of New
York City-area physicians
by the Columbia University
School of Public Health,
which claimed that 56 per
cent of doctors support NHI.
According to Francis A.
Davis, MD, who wrote the
article on results of the
survey in the March
'“Private Practice": The
results proved to us that
physicians are worried about
NHI, since 28,014 busy
doctors took the time to fill
out and return their
questionnaires."
Dr. Davis said that the
survey sponsors tabulated/
the first 26,434 answers-'fir
more doctors than have ever
participated in a survey on
this subject”-and because of
the age, speciality, state arid
sex distribution of the
doctors who responded, he
believes these 26,434 to be an
accurate sampling of the
nation’s 212,573 physicians.
While the famous national
opinion polls extrapolate
from a base of some 1,500
persons, “Private Practice”
extrapolated from its own
sample, to obtain the total
figures.
According to Dr. Davis,
although there was some
differences by age,
speciality, geographical
region, and sex, “we found
great unanimity among
physicians on these
questions, despite what the
Columbia and similar sur
veys have reported.”
On the question: “Do you
believe the Federal
government should pay the
medical bills for all your
private patients whose care
is not now defrayed by some
governmental agency?” -
the overall results were 7.1
percent yes, 92.9 percent no.
In other words, Dr. Davis
states, 197,480 doctors op
pose NHL
The highest percentage of
“no” votes - 95 percent - was
among physicians over 70,
but doctors under 30 also
said no by 83.2 percent to 16.8
percent. All other age groups
said “no” by 83.2 to 16.8
percent.
And doctors in all areas of
the country strongly oppose
NHI, from a high of 96.7
percent in the East South
Central states to a “low” of
84.3 percent in New England.
As in the Columbia survey,
Dr. Davis continued, we
found general and family
practitioners most
adamantly against a federal
takeover of medical care - 94
percent and 94.5 percent
respectively. Psychiatrists
were most in favor, but even
85.6 percent of fhe
psychiatrists opposed NHI.
Although NHI has proven
disastrous to the helath and
national budget of every
country where it’s been
tried, our survey shows that
the results in the United
States could be infinitely
worse, Dr. Davis says.
“Whenever an economic
good is offered by the
government at a price lower
than the free market would
set, demand skyrockets,
making the good scarcer and
the price higher. We have
seen it work with Medicare
and Medicaid, but NHI will
be significantly worse,” he
said.
“Under present con
ditions, there are 212,573
private, office-based
physicians to treat patients.
Some say there is a doctor
shortage. But if NHI is
enacted the number of
doctors treating patients will
drop precipitously, putting a
dangerous burden on the
remaining physicians.
Medical care will be much
harder to get, and much
more expensive, even though
most of the additional costs
will be financed through
taxation rather than our-of
pocket fees,” he said.
For proof of this
apocalyptic statement he
points to this question from
the survey; “If Congress
enacts a nationalized
medical program, will you
continue to practice under
such a program 7”
Although 72.8 percent said
“yes,” an astounding 27.2
percent said “no,” Dr. Davis
said. “In other words, if NHI
is mdeed an idea whose tune
has come, then 57,820 doctors
will refuse to participate.
Imagine what will happen to
American medical care -
hitherto the best in the world
to lose - the primary car
■if we lose over 27 percent of physicians of which, sayi
our doctors. These will be the Congress, we already hav<
doctors we can least afford too few.”