Currently surviving as a mere appendage of the cheesy Bank of America, the formerly esteemed ET is long gone – a victim of its own risk aversion, past corporate honesty and banking integrity.

PS: Ken Lewis - Bye! Bye!

Dave Marcinko
[Publisher-in-Chief]

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/front_page/20091110_Politics_aside__doctors_universally_fed_up_with_insurers.html

Anonymous 2

http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2009/11/09/unhappy-docs-push-ama-to-drop-support-for-house-health-bill/

Finally, these dolts in the minority are getting it right!
Anonymous

Darrell

Well done! Your deep clarity, steadfast logic and search for unbiased information on this blog are appreciated.

I implore you to keep up the good fight in all your core areas of health economics, practice management and finance, against those that tempt us otherwise.

We need your courageous informed voice.

Jack

http://www.facebook.com/pages/American-Dental-Association/32252997166?ref=mf

I find it incredible that the dinosaur organization continues to defy good business sense as if it were a protected species. If I were an ADA Vice President in charge of electronic media, I’d encourage my editor to aggressively grab all of the market share we could while the grabbin’s good. Whimsical customers who might turn to the AGD are begging right now to hear from the ADA. Dinosaurs don’t get second chances as great as this, and the ADA is letting credibility slip right through its slow, clumsy fat hands.

I invite you to follow me, ADA members. Let me show you what’s been happening with the upkeep on our lease while we weren’t paying attention. Wear old shoes. It’s a mess.

Almost 2 weeks ago, when I joined the ADA Facebook, I was fan number 1206. As of today, the ADA Facebook has attracted 1371 fans. Since I’ve started following its popularity, it has averaged over 90 new fans a week. Considering the only thing to read is the rapidly growing list of fans, the ADA Facebook is experiencing a surprisingly successful silent start.

If the ADA Facebook has been quietly attracting what appears to be intense interest since it opened, extrapolation of the recent pace suggests that the social network site has been functioning in some form since at least July. More than likely though, those who are paid with ADA dues to produce the site – both inside and outside the ADA – have been busy testing the Facebook applications in Beta much longer than that. I would guess it’s been open for about a year. It will be interesting when an ADA editor explains to us things like how the test subjects were selected. That could be sooner than the editor’s boss wishes.

From what I witnessed today, I think at least one high-ranked ADA official in Chicago fears allowing their new Facebook account to open – specifically because of the transparency it brings with it (when I’m around). Today, ADA Electronic Media Editor Laurie Rich read my name in a message I sent her on Facebook, and someone panicked.

To support my tale, allow me to begin by pointing out what accountability in a competitive business environment does for customer service. Did you know that I or anyone else can walk into any Wal-mart in numerous countries around the world, ask to speak to any employee’s boss and be afforded that right immediately and without question? And I don’t even own stock in Wal-mart.

Now let’s compare Wal-mart’s service with how the ADA treats its customers. Starting long ago, I’ve posted numerous concerns on the “ADA Member Email Forum.” I’ve tediously documented that when I ask ADA employees easy questions, I receive response ¼ of the time. And when my questions are more critical, nobody in the ADA acknowledges my visits (See “Transparency and the ADA – a dissecting experiment” 2/22/09).

http://community.pennwelldentalgroup.com/forum/topics/transparency-and-the-ada-a

What’s more, during numerous moments of justifiable frustration over the last couple of years, I’ve also been ignored when I’ve asked an anonymous ADA employee on the other end of my unanswered emails the name of his or her boss. I think you will see why as of a few hours ago, I suspect ADA editor Laurie Rich’s boss was somehow involved in the decision to insult an ADA member. Laurie recognized my name.

Compared to Wal-mart’s service, what does that say for the value I receive for the dues I’ve been paying to the ADA for almost 30 years? It’s no wonder our leaders can’t afford to raise the price of membership. If the ADA was accountable to consumers in a free market it would either have to charge less or go out of business. The ADA is not unlike another fat, threatened species: DDPA member dental insurance companies.

As described in an article I posted on the Medical Executive-Post last week titled “ADA opens a Facebook – Perhaps too Early?” I studied the only item available on the ADA site: The growing list of fans.

http://healthcarefinancials.wordpress.com/2009/11/04/ada-opens-a-facebook/

That was when I discovered that the first of 1200 fans of the ADA Facebook was someone named John Hergert, who I suspect is the marketing consultant who works for the Chicago company that won the contract to set up the ADA’s Facebook account. I also mentioned in the ME-P article the names of six more fans who followed Hergert. The second person to join was Laurie Rich.

This morning, I clicked on Laurie’s public Facebook site and left this message:

“Dear Laurie, Can you tell me when the ADA Facebook will open?”

When Laurie had not responded a little while later, I returned to her Facebook to invite her to be my friend – just like my invitation to DDPA CEO Kim E. Volk a month ago. That’s when I discovered that Laurie Rich has blocked me from accessing even her public Facebook site.

Not unexpectedly, Kim E. Volk ignored my invitation to friendship, but she hasn’t yet blocked me from her public page.

I take Wal-mart’s courtesy for granted because they actually want my business. But I would have never thought that the CEO of Delta Dental would treat me with more respect than ADA Media Editor Laurie Rich.

Extinction is always a possibility if a dinosaur can’t adapt to the changing climate quick enough.

D. Kellus Pruitt; DDS

1. ePrescribing
2. Sending reminders to patients
3. Checking insurance eligibility
4. Submitting e-claims
5. Electronic copy of patient records
6. Patients e-access to their e-records
7. Clinical information exchange by providers-patient authorized entities
8. Submit data to immunization registries
9. Provide syndromic surveillance data to public health agencies

Brad

Good post, and did you know that because of the Pension Protection Act [PPA] of 2006, starting in January 2010, we will no longer have to pay federal income tax on an annuity’s proceeds as long as those proceeds are used to pay for long-term-care coverage.

This means the chronically ill or disabled will no longer have to rely solely on a regular long-term-care insurance policy or Medicaid to fund their medical and nonmedical care.

Nancy

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced a 21.2 percent 2010 pay cut for physicians participating in Medicare.

http://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/medicare-doctors-face-whopping-pay-cut-2010

Ben

DocTalker is a new telehealth medical team that answers patient calls and emails directly, 24/7. This direct access to primary care is supposed to help patients stay healthier and have their medical issues resolved quickly.

http://www.doctokr.com

What do you think?

And, you can make same-day, no-wait office visits, including nights and weekends to stay out of the ER! Virtual house calls are made, when needed, day or night.

Chaz

Did you know that jurisdiction for consumer financial products is scattered over an array of federal agencies, none of which concentrates primarily on consumers and all of which delegate it to a backwater area of regulatory responsibility.

As this group of consumer law professors put it:

“Our review of the regulatory approaches at the existing agencies, whose jurisdiction includes but does not focus on consumer financial products, leads us to conclude that on balance they place a higher value on protecting the interest of financial product vendors who promote complex debt instruments using aggressive sales practices, than they do on protecting the interests of consumers in transparent, safe, and fair financial products.”

http://law.hofstra.edu/NewsAndEvents/PressReleases/pressreleases_20090928_consumer.html

I agree; don’t you?
Hank

Excellent articles, and nice photo of Steny Hoyer [D-MD] on the home page. I hope the photo, and this legislature, is fleeting. Nevertheless, a democratic “mission accomplished” for now.

The “radical” house healthcare reform bill has passed. The Senate will soon introduce a bill with a seriously toned down set of mandates and public options. Let’’s hope that Nancy P. and Harry Reid will not be able to muster 60 votes in favor of it.

Heaven help us all.

Mary

Some believe that the zealot-like use of MPT is just a risk reduction mechanism. As you may know, the rendered care in medicine need not always correct; but it must be within a given standard-of-care for the involved specialty [major opinion or significant minority standard]. So, if all FAs blindly use MPT, isn’t their systemic risk of industry malpractice [EO liability] reduced, if not eliminated?

IOW: It’s not my fault if we all got poor results.

And, the SOC for FAs, brokers, CFPs® and many others in the retail advisory space may be considered very low indeed. That’s why we started the online http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com program in health economics and medical management for physician focused niche advisors. You see, Certified Medical Planners™ must be fiduciaries at all times, and at least be college graduates – still unfortunately a high watermark for far too many folks providing financial advice today.

Oh! Thanks for the kind words.

Dave Marcinko
[Publisher-in-Chief]

Mazel Tov’ on the milestone. Keep up the innovative publishing.

Seymour