Has the medical profession lost its collective conscience? Are their pricing practices forcing our politicians to impose socialized medicine upon us, for better or worse?

Recently I had a bone marrow biopsy and an MRA scan of my carotid arteries. Both were skillfully administered.

I assumed that being informed of the results would be included in the hefty fees. When I requested that the results be sent to me I was advised to make appointments with the doctors.

The first appointment was just to obtain the results of the biopsy. When, at first, the nurse took my blood pressure, I was informed that, if it wasn’t, Medicare would not pay for the visit! When the doctor arrived he asked if I had any questions.

I had four. They were all answered in one or two words. The doctor offered no opinions of his own. After four or five minutes the appointment was over. The bill was $231.84. The answers could easily been derived from a copy of the test report.

At the appointment for the carotid artery test result I was quickly informed that there was no change from the one that was made six months previously. The meeting lasted no more than five minutes. The bill was only $93.47 — quite a bargain!

Again, why should there be charges just to be told the obvious results — particularly when no prognosis was forthcoming?

Perhaps there is an ethical rationale for the above practices.

Robert Martin

Bend