Why do doctors care more about money than patients?

My wife cannot eat or drink without pain and has been in this condition since October. She has lost 42 pounds. I serve a small church that provides no health insurance. Doctors will not see her without a large payment up front, and then limit what they will do for fear of not getting paid. We have set up payment plans with all of them. It is about to break us financially. What few tests they have run have revealed nothing. They are reluctant to run any more. How does a person get health care with no insurance? I thought doctors were supposed to care for people more than money.

We have agreed on payment plans to pay these doctors. I can see by what they drive and where they live that they really need all their money up front. So please don't give me any more "they really do care but need to make money" answers.

i work for a doctor, and honestly, it's not that the doctor doesn't care, its more like we cant give free treatment to anyone because if we do---everyone expects it. its like going to wal-mart and telling the cashier you don't have enough money to buy your groceries. do they let you leave with them anyway? NO! same at the dentist, eye doctor, hospital, gp... its just not an option if we want to stay in business. it's not our fault that not everyone has adequate health benefits. and we're a business, yes we take care of people, but we cant do it for free...there's a lot of overhead in this field. watch JOHN Q...its a really good movie and although heart wrenching---its how the world works...

Welcome to the real world that doesn't run on charity.. sorry.
Remember though, there is always Medicaid.

Unfortunately, you are largely correct. The medical industry is run via legal and accounting considerations, not medical ones.

First of all, let me say I understand and feel for the situation you are in, I have been there myself and it's not fun in the least. I wish I could agree with you about doctors because I feel that medical costs in this country are outrageous. Unfortunately, it's not necessarily the doctors fault, although there are a percentage of bad apples in EVERY industry.

However, if one of the members of your church needed $1,000 to help pay for some bills because they just couldn't afford it, you would help them right? Of course you would. But what if ALL of your members needed $1,000. You see where I'm going with this. If a doctor gives you free medical services, then they have to give them to everyone, and unfortunately, we can't expect people to help us while hurting themselves.

If you can't afford insurance, get on Medicaid or Medicare, those coverages are usually backdated so may cover some of the bills you have already incurred and then doctors will be willing to run ANY tests that are needed.

Good luck to you!

How long can ANY business stay in business, if they work for free? OK, you're a church. You're a business centered around charity. But when was the last time you got a free burger from McDonalds?

Doctors have workers comp insurance, malpractice insurance, office expenses like rent, salaries for the nurses, electric bills, (hey, those tests cost THEM money, and the cost of the equipment is astronomical!), taxes, and six figure student loans they have to pay. There are a LOT of expenses to being a doctor.

Regarding the health care - see if there's a charity hospital in your area, or start asking around your church to see if anyone knows a doctor that does charity work. It will be REAL charity, as the doctor who treats you for free, will ALSO be paying out of pocket for your testing, which could easily end up costing them tens of thousands of dollars.