Karen Thurman: “People sometimes do not realize how complicated Medicare can be at times; and when one is trying to balance…”

“People sometimes do not realize how complicated Medicare can be at times; and when one is trying to balance beneficiaries and the doctors and the contractors, sometimes we have to work through some very difficult situations. I will tell my colleagues that in talking with my doctors in the fifth district, one of the things that I heard over and over again was the sheer volume and complexity of the Medicare regulations and what it has meant to them. Most of what it means to them is they do not have the time to spend with their patients because they are spending so much time on the complexities. Another issue that I think is very important about this is that these doctors also tell me, in talking with their staffs and their offices, that their administrative expenses can represent as much as 25 percent of their cost. That means, again, the cost to Medicare and the dollars that we have available is not being spent on the patient, but on administrative costs.”