Right. The "wellness" visit is total BS that does nothing for the patient, period. Just gives the provider money for nothing. They ask you if you have problems x,y,z and when you say yes you do, that's the end of it, nothing done about any problems. Go back and do that again every year, same problems "yes", nothing done, no followup. No point whatsoever.
Here's how my doctor handles Medicare wellness visit. A 20-something medical assistant asks all the questions such as are you pissing on yourself, are you falling down, can you tell time on a clock with moveable hands (yes thank you I learned that over 65 years ago), are you sexually active, can you take care of yourself (yes thank you I am working every day) and other such stupid nonsense. He documents it as counseling, i.e. questions asked about diet are documented as diet counseling, questions about exercise are documented as counseling about heart health. That is all he does except ask about when last mammogram & colonoscopy was. Oh yeah a question is asked if you have an advance directive. He documents it saying an X amount of time was spent counseling patient about advance directives. He gets paid. I get nothing but asked stupid questions. This is the most worthless exercise I have ever encountered at a doctors office. It should be against the law for a doctor to document lies. I will NEVER again be tricked into such a stupid exercise. Yes it is ALL about money and ZERO about patient health.
That’s because Medicare doesn’t pay for an annual physical! An annual wellness visit is NOT an annual physical! Patients should not have to request tests for each body part. Contact CMS and your representatives! They know how important a basic annual physical is to longevity. Why have seniors and their agents tolerated loss of this basic coverage?
Patients have a “expectation” of an annual physical because of what they received their entire life! That’s because Medicare doesn’t pay for an annual physical! An annual wellness visit is NOT an annual physical! Patients should not have to request tests for each body part. Contact CMS and your representatives! They know how important a basic annual physical is to longevity. Why have seniors and their agents tolerated loss of this basic coverage?
The questions regarding depression are persistent and nosy. It's as if they're looking for a positive answer. They are also asking whether or not there are firearms in the house. That's none - I repeat, none of their business.
