It has been a long time coming, but I have finally completed my training, and have registered with the State as a Registered Investment Advisor.  My new firm, Pennsylvania Physician Advisors, Inc., will focus on the unique financial issues faced by Pennsylvania physicians.  I feel that personal financial planning for physicians will mesh very nicely with my law practice, which concentrates on the legal representation of physicians.

          Physicians are working harder to make less.  They are exposed to increasingly aggressive plaintiffs’ attorneys, diminishing returns from health insurers, and mounting demands from bottom-line oriented hospital administrators.  Because of the time constraints they work under, they frequently do not have adequate time to assure that their financial health is protected.

With an appropriate financial plan, physicians can rest assured that their income and assets are protected, and that their financial goals will be met.

Physicians simply do not have time to educate themselves about the intricacies of tax planning or asset protection.  They frequently fall prey to commissioned salespeople eager to sell products, who do not have their best interests at heart.  Because of the rapidly evolving health care environment and their advisors’ general lack of knowledge about their specific problems, the financial health of physicians is rarely as good as it should be or could be.

Physicians need a trusted advisor with all relevant information about them.  In this way, a holistic approach to their financial health can give them peace of mind and allow them to focus on the practice of medicine.

          I will meet extensively with each physician to understand his or her individual situation, and to review insurance, taxes, estate planning, and investments on a holistic basis. 

          To learn more about this process, please visit www.PaPhysicianAdvisors.com

CQ HealthBeat is reporting that Peter Orszag, Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, says he expects revision of the nation’s medical malpractice litigation system to be a part of health overhaul discussions.

The healthcare proposal of the House Democrats released yesterday calls for replacing the Sustainable Growth Rate (“SGR”) used to calculate Medicare payments.  The SGR is the mechanism that is intended to adjust physician per service compensation so that overall spending remains constant.  Without legislative action this year, physicians would face a 21% reimbursement cut in 2010, and an additional 6% annual decrease for several years thereafter. The House Democrats also propose increasing compensation to primary care physicians.

It’s too soon to tell how this will all shake out, but it is good to know that both the Executive Branch and Congress are at least considering the plight of physicians while they are diddling with the system.

The 800-pound gorillas in York, Adams and Dauphin Counties have announced they are considering an affiliation.  This is NOT good news for physicians in those counties.  While Pinnacle has been generally reasonable to work with, WellSpan will flex its muscles at every opportunity, and seems to have a “scorched earth” policy when it comes to dealing with physicians. 

I hope they have the same consultants that Hershey Medical Center and Geisinger used.