Declining Health Care
My cardiologist quit his profession and took a job as an administrator for an insurance company, reviewing heart problem claims. He was required by Medicare to charge fees as if he was practicing on a farm on the border of Mexico. However, he lived and practiced in one of the most affluent communities in America, where the cost of living is very high. Some bureaucrat designed the borders of this region for Medicare charges without regard to the differences in the cost of living inside the region. He made better money and with less stress as a bureaucrat than as a practicing cardiologist. Most of the doctors in Santa Barbara do not take Medicare due to the low fees and the amount of paper work involved.