Because Nothing Says "Freedom" Like Denying Healthcare

Here is the letter I will be sending to the hospital, the corporation running the hospital, the hospitalist, and the discharge planning nurse. Of course, the content will be changed for each individual. I am also sending a copy to the newspaper, my two senators, and my congressman. I doubt it will do any good, but I am sure getting a laugh out of it.

Dear

Your hospital must be commended on its latest actions to promote its stockholders’ wealth. The profits you are making for the LifePoint Hospitals Corporation are making me so giddy! I cannot wait to purchase my shares of LPNT, so that I too may have my share. After all, the stock is up $10 a share since the first quarter of the year.

I was so thrilled to learn of how you were able to get the profits rolling. For instance in early September, one of your hospitalists was able to mislead one of your patients into leaving early, against her admitting physician’s desire, because the business office was having trouble getting her stay authorized. Rather than go to the expense of having an employee stay on the phone with the insurance company to find out what they needed and then fax all those pesky hospital notes, you got the patient to leave! Brilliant. Let her eat aspirin, I say.

Her early discharge was even better because she had to check back in three weeks later with a worsening health problem. How great for the bottom line! Rather than trouble yourselves with contacting her insurance company again, you assumed they would not pay. Within 12 hours of admitting her, you marshaled a nurse (under the guise of discharge planning) and a hospitalist to try to convince her to leave, even though she was not stable. Nice try! There may be a severe loss of profit if healthcare is given to everyone.

Once your hospitalist did determine that her stay would be covered (while wearing oxygen, the patient had to fight with her insurance company to get the coverage), he lined up as many unnecessary tests as he could muster. After all healthcare is for profit, not for people. Even then, the business office came to her bedside asking for payment. Once again she was pressed into service to get her insurance company to pay. Why should our staff be bothered?

I might also observe the outstanding way you overwork your staff. Who cares if patient care suffers? We need to squeeze every ounce of effort out of these lay-about employees. What is even more extraordinary is how you recruit volunteers to fill positions you would otherwise have had to pay someone minimum wage to fill. As they say, do no harm to the bottom line!

Sincerely,
Mrs. Mon E. Baggs