It is unclear whether Lewis Hitchcock is actually or willfully ignorant of certain facts (“Doctors earn a lot, charge patients a lot,” Star-Advertiser, Letters, June 20).
As a medical doctor who has worked in Hawaii for more than 40 years, I have more than a passing familiarity with said facts.
First, most doctors are not salaried as he suggests; their income comes from fee-for-service. Out of this must come office rent, staff salaries, insurance premiums, license fees, certification fees and more. Gross income is not the same as net income.
Second, I would label as overwork such things as working seven days a week, unexpectedly working evenings and nights, and having to remain in the hospital, (not by choice) for 24 to 36 hours. Maybe he would not.
Third, no physician expects to receive whatever his submitted charges are. A contractually agreed-upon fraction of this is what an insurance company will actually pay.
I chose to work in Hawaii knowing that my income would be about half what it would be in other states with lower costs of living. Many others choose not to; hence a physician shortage.
Gregory B. Wilson, M.D.
Downtown Honolulu
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