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Yet another doctor has decided to quit practicing medicine due to Obamacare’s onerous burdens.
“I am in my mid-70s and have both the capacity and willingness to care for patients for another decade. But I am retiring,” Dr. John Curry of Fairfax, VA, wrote to one of his patients, columnist Cal Thomas, in an explanation of how the Affordable Care Act (ACA), more commonly known as Obamacare, is leading him to retire early.
“I cannot stand it anymore. More than half of my time in the office is spent filling out forms, writing letters, responding to inquiries, and attending to ‘urgent’ matters that did not exist 10 years ago. And every year my income is less,” he wrote. “At this point I would rather be paid nothing and have the freedom to decide what is right for my patients.”
“ACA is only another straw, but for this tired camel, it will break my back,” wrote Curry.
This is consistent with The Deloitte Center for Health Solutions survey of more than 600 physicians, which found “Six in 10 physicians (62 percent) said it is likely many of their colleagues will retire earlier than planned in the next one to three years.”
Curry emphasized that Obamacare will make medicine far more impersonal, reduce choice, and significantly increase costs:
The monstrosity has been birthed, and soon you will look in vain if you are seeking a personal physician who knows you, cares about you, and to whom you have ready access. You will find only systems, ready to suck you up, give you a number, and provide you with federally approved accountable care in a sterile environment populated by highly regulated strangers. And it will cost you a lot! (Whatever anyone says, prepare for a future where your health costs will be higher and your choices fewer!)
As Thomas explains, the country can’t afford to lose good doctors like Curry, but having fewer doctors is one of many side effects of Obamacare. While a physician shortage was predicted before Obamacare, too, the law just makes things worse. The American Association of Medical Colleges estimates the U.S. faces a shortage of 91,500 physicians by 2020.
Read the Top Five Reasons Obamacare Is Bad for Doctors to learn more.