Med News Today

Some Docs 'Nickel and Diming'

According to an article in the Los Angeles Times, a new trend is starting in the health care industry: doctors' offices charging patients for renewing prescriptions, filling out routine forms and even e-mail responses.

Ching, ching! Doctors — particularly primary care doctors — are increasingly billing for services that patients have long expected to get gratis: prescription refills, photocopies of medical records, phone consultations, family medical leave forms, medical disability forms, waivers of insurance premiums, waivers for handicapped plates.

* * *

Even many physicians admit being uneasy about what they themselves refer to as "nickel-and-diming." And those who have so far bucked the trend suggest it is only a matter of time before they join the crowd.

Like most new trends, they start on the coasts and move toward the center of the country. So Middle America should be forewarned.

posted by nattietodd @ 7:23 AM