I recently received a letter from UPMC, which not only stated that Highmark is wrong but also enclosed a copy of the Post Gazette editorial against Highmark’s new Community Blue Medicare HMO program that excludes all UPMC’s doctors and hospitals.
Choosing this plan they say will prevent you from affordably accessing UPMC’s services, ranging from the Hillman Cancer Center to UPMC’s designated National Center of Excellence in Geriatric Medicine, because all of UPMC is out-of-network for Highmark’s Community Blue Medicare HMO product. Out-of-network means you could be forced to pay large medical bills to receive care from UPMC doctors and hospitals, the letter said.
They go on to state that the Attorney General, and the Insurance Commissioner are suing Highmark because they are in violation of the Consent Decree that they signed this summer.
Well, correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this the same thing UPMC is doing when they force you to change hospitals and doctors which aren’t UPMC doctors or hospitals? My company has UPMC, and I have no problem with them as a whole. But I do have a problem when I live blocks from Allegheny General but can’t go there. I have a problem when I have a doctor I’m completely satisfied with but have to change because he’s not a UPMC doctor nor can a UPMC approved doctor do any kind of procedures at AGH.
Now I don’t claim to be an expert in this whole UPMC vs. Highmark battle, but I don’t think the government should be stepping in on this issue unless they include the total picture and are fair to both sides.
The patient should have the right to pick any doctor he wants regardless of who that doctor is affiliated with. And the patient with his doctor should be able to select what hospital or facility they want to be treated in regardless of affiliations. That should not only be Medicare patients but all patients. There’s more than enough room in Western Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania and the country for UPMC and Highmark.
There may have to be a mediator to step between these two giants and force them to fight fair and lookout for the patient first instead of their net profits. That is what the District Attorney and the Insurance Commissioner should be doing.
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We ran a front page story on the Philadelphia politicians seeing Red over a bill that passed through Harrisburg and now goes to Gov. Tom Corbett to sign which allows people and companies to sue city and county government entities who pass laws making it harder to get guns, and putting stiffer restrictions on people who own guns. For example if you lose your gun or it gets stolen, you must report it.
How do you lose a gun? I’m just sayin’.
I’m having problems catching hold of either side. First of all why would you have a problem with reporting a stolen or missing gun? Guns are expensive; if you report it missing you stand a better chance of getting it back. Yet there’s millions of dollars being spent nationally to block these kinds of laws. How is this preventing people from having guns. Why is this even an issue? If you have a gun, which is a dangerous weapon in the wrong hands, why would you have a problem reporting it missing?
But on the other hand I don’t understand why politicians, especially a lot of Black urban politicians who know better, are fighting to get more gun control legislation passed as if that’s going to curtail the massive number of street killings.
First of all the killings on the streets are being done with illegal guns. How are gun laws going to affect that? It’s not going to stop the illegal arms dealers who are selling thousands of guns and ammunition to urban drug groups all over this country. And they are making millions of tax-free dollars doing it. So why would they care about these gun laws. And you can’t tell me that these gun manufacturers and distributors aren’t involved in these illegal guns being sold in the streets. We are talking thousands of people.
Anyone who lives in Black urban communities can generally get a gun easily, unless he or she tries to get one legally. Did you know there’s not one single gun store in the city of Pittsburgh? If you know of one please let me know, because I haven’t been able to find one. Yet we have Black kids gunning each other down every week all over the country. Do these politicians and activists really believe these gun laws are going to stop or put a dent in the guns on the streets by criminals?
And No, I do not believe what the police and other authorities are trying to sell us that these guns are coming from mothers, and girlfriends. If they are why are the gun people fighting so hard to not report missing guns. You are telling me that thousands of mothers and girlfriends are out buying these guns for these young males? Give me a break.
Yes I feel that every citizen who wants a gun should have a right to have one. But just like a car, or anything else there’s certain responsibilities that goes with it. And passing a background check, and reporting a missing gun is not asking too much.
(Ulish Carter is the managing editor of the New Pittsburgh Courier. Send comments to ucarter@newpittsburghcourier.com)
