"Office Visit"

You wonder why medical costs are out of hand? Here's one example of extreme extravagance.

I had scheduled a procedure with my gastroenterologist for mid February.

His office said he wanted to see me beforehand. Today was the day. I arrived at the appointed time and much to my surprise, within minutes I was taken to an examination room. Knowing how doctors operate (no pun intended) I always bring reading material with me to pass the waiting time.

I had the Arts and Main Section of the Times this morning. I started and finished the crossword puzzle and the rest of that section. Then I started the main section.

Frequently, I heard sounds in the hallway. I thought any minute my door would be next to open. The sounds continued and so did my reading. Just as I finished the main section the doctor finally appeared. An hour had elapsed from the time I was ushered into the exam room.

The first thing I said was that it's a good thing he showed up because I had just run out of reading material. I also said the least he could have done was send in a cup of coffee. Donuts would have been nice but I don't think Medicare covers them.

In any case, he smiled at me, patted me on the knee and mumbled an apology for the delay. Then he put me on the table, poked around my stomach, asked a few questions and said goodbye.

I didn't clock it but I'm sure this mandatory office visit could not have taken more than five minutes of his time. I can only imagine what he'll bill Medicare for this.

Maybe he rents out his exam rooms by the hour.