Local oncologists say they are already preparing for the effects of sequestration to cancer care.?
Some private clinics further north are already beginning to turn thousands of Medicare patients away due to the government's decreasing reimbursement, sending patients to hospitals instead.?
"Our estimates are that there will be at least a two percent to as much as 28 percent reduction in payments to physicians that do cancer medicine," said Dr. John Mattern of Virginia Oncology Associates.?
WAVY.com spoke with Dr. Mattern about these cuts happening in Hampton Roads.
"Most of the time, I never know what kind of insurance a person has," Mattern?said. "I know if they're over 65 they usually have Medicare.? But I've never made a medical decision on whether someone should get treatment or no treatment, or whether I should order a test or not based on the patients ability to pay. Will we be able to continue that? I don't know the answer to that."
He said if doctors aren't getting reimbursed, they can't stay afloat.?
"We could see patients expecting drugs that cost in the thousands, but reimbursement is only in the hundreds. That's not sustainable," Mattern said.
His group is already thinking of contingency plans.
"We're looking at ?closing offices, eliminating overtime, suggesting people take more vacation unpaid," Mattern said.
Mattern said it's a difficult situation that no one has answers to right now. He said he wishes the government could figure out cost-effective ways to care for and serve patients without everyone suffering; patients, the healthcare system or physicians.
WAVY.com talked to one local family that fully agreed with Dr. Mattern.?
"We absolutely couldn't do it without Medicare. This scares me to death," Dennis Bragg said.?
Bragg is currently battling Multiple Myeloma Cancer.? His wife, who's also a Medicare patient, recently had a second fight with breast cancer.?
"[Medicare has] been our lifeline," Kathy Bragg said.
WAVY.com found that the government does have the authority to modify the implementation of sequestration cuts to exclude cancer drugs, which currently fall under Medicare Part B drugs.?
Dr. Mattern suggests patients write their lawmakers, and check with insurance companies to see what they will and won't cover.
Source: http://www.wavy.com/dpp/news/local_news/newport_news/sequestration-takes-toll-on-cancer-care
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