Patients First and Foremost
This week MSSNY President Dr. Paul Pipia and Nassau County Medical Society President Dr. David Podwall stressed the fact that patients are of primary importance to New York physicians. In his Empire Report op-ed, Our Patients Need and Deserve Physician-Led Healthcare, Dr. Pipia addressed MSSNY’s concern with scope of practice legislation that would completely remove the important oversight and coordination role which a trained physician plays in overseeing a patient’s care. He also explained that the shortage of primary and specialty care physicians – especially in underserved areas of New York State, can be remedied by helping this state become a more welcoming place to practice medicine.
“Every New Yorker deserves to have a physician oversee their medical care. There are a number of steps policymakers can take to expand availability of physicians, including increasing Medicaid payments, additional loan repayment opportunities for serving in underserved areas, and increasing the use of trained International Medical Graduates (IMGs).
Let’s work to increase physicians practicing in and across New York, instead of advancing measures that will enable large health care systems the ability to replace them.
Our patients deserve nothing less.”
Dr. Podwall expressed similar “patient first” sentiments in his comments in Newsday’s article Mount Sinai and UnitedHealthcare reach deal. Dr. Podwall expressed concern that “It is really a game between these two huge systems, but who is suffering is the patients,” noting long waitlists for them even before this market disruption. Dr. Podwall stated, “They either can’t get their care or they’re going to go bankrupt getting their care.”
