Hassles in health care

I thought I would change my primary-care medical provider to a clinic that was closer to my residence and asked about transferring my records. Even though the clinic was in the same medical group in the same area, I was told that each clinic has a quota for each doctor to see Medicare patients and they had no openings. I know someone who recently moved to Northwest Arkansas from Central Arkansas and could not find a primary-care physician because they are on Medicare.

It doesn’t take a CPA to understand the low reimbursement rate for Medicare patients is the primary factor in establishing quotas. I even attempted to use one of their urgent-care centers on a Saturday and was turned away because I was on Medicare. I offered to pay cash and was told I couldn’t be seen because I was a Medicare patient.

Find a doctor who will agree to see you before you relocate, or drop your current primary-care provider. I even have a substantial secondary insurance policy besides my Medicare. And yes, I worked 40 years and retired twice. JOHN MASSEY

Springdale