Reply To: Political Statements
Per the article, $43 billion spread over ten years. The $460 billion figure doesn’t appear in that article. I must say, it seems surreal to hear Republican opposition to Medicare cuts.
What percentage of doctors in the USA would probably take early retirement or quit if this bill doesn’t pass? There are a lot of boomers who are contemplating retirement in any case. As boomers start getting Medicare, reimbursements will drop under the status quo. Critics of this bill are seldom considering the consequences of doing nothing, an option which is scary in its own right.
As Angelastic notes, pre-50 mammograms have fallen out of favor lately, independent of the California budget. The false positive rate is ridiculously high, and the small number of malignant tumors they find sufficiently early to allow effective treatment is apparently offset by the increased risk that comes from the radiation dose. Mammography incurs a small but statistically significant risk, and if the test isn’t of tangible benefit to younger women, they’re better off without it. It’s interesting that this was announced at the same time as similar “don’t even bother” news regarding PSA assays; I suspect it was decided to announce the official fall from favor of both tests at the same time lest the scientists involved be accused of gender bias.