The lock box idea also has a lot of merit. I would take the ‘notification’ one step further and have them send one to the ‘doctor who ordered’ the test. Once a day an electronic update would be sent to the doctor’s office and they could then click on the line and get an update for that test. This way we continue with the paperless office.

To clarify my point a bit better, I was not suggesting that the insurance company/bank be assuming the role of a care provider. I meant that they would be the custodian of the electronic health record since everything has to go thru them anyway. My doctor has to get a test OK’d prior to writing a prescription for it. The contact my insurance company and get an authorization for it and I go get my test. The test center will send electronically the films and results to the insurance company’s ‘bank’ where my EHR resides and my primary care physician will access the results from her office. She can then create a course of treatment based on those results, which is entered into her practice management application, which will also upload to my ‘bank’.

I know all of this is a bit on the simplistic side, but we have to start somewhere. Someone coming up with an idea or template and then having other people make suggestions to refine it is what we need to do.

I don’t want to restrict the right of any practice management software company. What I do want is for them to be able to all include a feature that would allow what a doctor enters to be uploaded (without any additional costs to the doctor)to the bank. Call this a part of doing business.

Lastly, we need one standard, not multiple, expensive, confusing versions.

Thanks for the feedback and feel free to pass this on and continue the discussion.

Let’s flesh this out a little. What was the “symptom” that drove you to the ATM in the first place? You had no cash right? So in this case the bank ATM was essentially the care provider for the ailment you suffered, which was not enough 20’s in the leather.

It’s an easy fix for sure, but in this case, the Bank is NOT performing the roll the insurance company plays in our healthcare system, the ATM is – a very fine distinction, but one worthy of note. After all, when Russell Artzt was in France, I highly doubt that he even went to an ATM that was associated with his bank, just like we oftentimes are forced to see a doctor that may not be a direct care provider for our insurance company. Under no circumstance simple or complex, would I EVER WANT my insurance company playing the roll of a medical care provider in my life either, the same way I avoid going into the bank at all costs for $100.00 cash. Look at the state of the insurance industry today – they are only marginally better than the Banks and Wall Street firms. If we relied on the insurance company for care, we’d all die a lot younger at the hands of insurance stock holders.

In your example, the supplier of cash/currency INTO the bank account is ultimately playing the role of an active health insurance policy. As is the case in real life with employment statistics nowadays, too many people are without jobs and thus, cannot keep their bank accounts filled… too many people are also without proper insurance coverage. To some degree the two issues may be linked, but another reason people don’t have insurance coverage is because the cost of coverage is too great for many families to bear without help in the form of employer or state funding.

I know that I have not provided better clarity with regard to what SHOULD be done with the medical industry, which is a personal pet peeve of mine, however, the situation is self perpetuating. As the number of underinsured grows, it will continue cause the macro economic picture to worsen with regard to insurance costs. Every time a care provider can’t collect for a procedure, the rest of our costs (billed through insurance companies of course) goes up to make up for unpaid service provided. Insurance companies just provide the clearinghouse/vehicle for providers and payers, doctors and patients in this case, with a little bit of regulation thrown in for good measure. Creating a more efficient process (which is what EMR is all about) can only help the situation, not hurt it, although just like you, I question whether or not it will solve the problem.