How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid

Re:How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid by famprivate on Thursday March 09, 2023 @12:09PM (#35083595)

Both of my in-laws are in their early 70s have been recommended to have shoulder surgeries by their doctors because of shoulder pain. There was no recommendation of seeing a PT or introducing any sort of strength and mobility work into their lives. My wife and I keep trying to convince them that they should be using surgery as a last resort, not as a first attempt at addressing their pain. They've lived the typical sedentary lives most Americans live and it seems impossible to get them to believe that doing physical activity would help their pain.

If they get the surgeries they're going to have to do months of PT anyway, so why not at least try it first? But surgery is what their doctor recommended and they're of the generation that doesn't believe a doctor would be wrong about something or would be doing the thing that makes them the most money.

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Re:How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid by wil421 on Thursday March 09, 2023 @12:27PM (#35083844)

My father-in-laws doctors are kinda like this. He’s definitely had real damage in younger years but I think a lot of recent pain is because of a lack of any physical exertion, he’s allergic to stairs and takes the shortest path anywhere.

Spot on about the PT, it was probably the most regular physical exertion he’s done since the last surgery.

My docs are always like you need PT, stretches, and more movement for your upper back/shoulders/heel etc. Also stop doing these X things that bother it. In no way were they going to give me surgery or even pain killers.

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Re:How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid by mistrial9 on Thursday March 09, 2023 @12:35PM (#35083973)

an old surgeon here in California (now deceased) used to complain bitterly about the PTs making more money than he did ! So many stories about that guy.. big game hunting in Africa was a status symbol, his daughter had a $200k wedding.. etc

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Re:How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid by spaceman_2020 on Thursday March 09, 2023 @12:58PM (#35084351)

Good PTs are worth all their fees. Truly underrated profession. I wish they all made more money cause then more people would be motivated to get better at it.

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Re:How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid by SketchySeaBeast on Thursday March 09, 2023 @01:06PM (#35084468)

It's true. The problem is hard it's hard to separate the wheat from the chaff.

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Re:How to brazenly steal $100B from Medicare and Medicaid by runamok on Thursday March 09, 2023 @02:36PM (#35085575)

The amount of money insurance will pay PTs is nonsense too. Last time my wife went it was like $40 or $50 an hour or perhaps less?

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