One size fits all? Not for medicine

Re “Proposal aims to overhaul Medicare” (Monday):

Patients will suffer under the new system.

While the oppressive weight of administrative paperwork is crushing our ability as physicians to devote our time to providing care directly to our patients, the new Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services suggestion of a “one-sizefits-all “payment as a means to reduce this burden is ludicrous.

Anyone who performs a service for a living can surely understand that the scope and complexity of the task at hand must be the basis for reimbursement. A plumber does not charge the same for repairing a leaky faucet as he or she would to install a sink and faucets. Nor does your local mechanic charge the same for an oil change as opposed to repairing your brakes.

Likewise, physicians must be afforded the proper amount of time and tools to treat their patients in accordance with the complexity of the patient’s specific issues. To offer less is an injustice to the patient. They are the ones who will suffer when payments for treatment of complex medical conditions are arbitrarily homogenized and reduced.

The ability to reduce the egregious administrative tasks, which add nothing to the well-being of the patient, can and should be reduced without compromising patient care. It should never be offered as a bargaining chip at the expense of medical quality.

THE NEW YORK TIMES The Trump administration hopes to cut red tape by establishing a single Medicare rate for office visits, but doctors warn against the change.