The problem of finding a medical specialist on a Neighbor Island is very vividly being played out in Kona. Like many other communities, it is virtually impossible to get specialized care if you have more than a common cold. Most of the time, Neighbor Island residents have to travel, at great expense, to Honolulu to get the specialized care they need.
This PBN story tells of the looming medical crisis that is occurring in Kona, which is growing rapidly and yet it finds it impossible to keep qualified pracitioners due to the high cost of living and malpractice insurance and the low amounts of reimbursement from insurance carriers.
The State should be working with HMSA and other health insurers to revise their rules for reimbursement so that doctors can afford to practice in the smaller towns in Hawai'i, and the Federal government can do more to force the malpractice insurers to either lower their rates or put caps on the amounts paid out to patients who win their malpractice suits.
Miulang
This PBN story tells of the looming medical crisis that is occurring in Kona, which is growing rapidly and yet it finds it impossible to keep qualified pracitioners due to the high cost of living and malpractice insurance and the low amounts of reimbursement from insurance carriers.
The State should be working with HMSA and other health insurers to revise their rules for reimbursement so that doctors can afford to practice in the smaller towns in Hawai'i, and the Federal government can do more to force the malpractice insurers to either lower their rates or put caps on the amounts paid out to patients who win their malpractice suits.
Miulang
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