Epic Health Care Reform Changes, but Who Has the Time?
Today is the day Blue Cross Blue Shield cuts my reimbursement rates by 11%. Yesterday I got another “FYI” (yes, that is the official name *smirk*) from Blue Cross telling me that they will no longer reimburse out of network providers directly and “are working to encourage our members to use in-network providers to contain costs.”
This is not-so-subtle code for, “Screw all of you who signed off the panel in protest of our cuts last month, now we’re making it even harder for you to get paid.”
I stayed on the panel, but my colleagues who resigned as of 9/1 are miserable right now. They are angry, frustrated and worst of all going to feel the hurt financially very soon.
If you are a regular reader here, you know I offer ideas and solutions for these kinds of business issues. Most of the information is free, or super low cost. People acknowledge how helpful this information is. Which is nice to hear.
But then they say (actual quotes)………
“I don’t have the time to do your marketing program.”
“I’ve been writing a book for 2 years and just can’t seem to finish it.”
“I’m in your Marketing Your Private Practice program, but never listen to the audio or watch the video, please unsubscribe me.”
“I know I need to add another income stream, but just can’t seem to motivate myself to get started.”
Hm. When your income is set to be cut for years to come, it is so hard for me to accept that no one has the time or energy to DO SOMETHING to change that reality.
The irony here is that Blue Cross (and the other managed care companies) seem to have plenty of time to change their policies every 30 days.
More irony, they are people, just like you, and they have the same 24/7 that you do. No one gives anyone an extra hour or two in the day to do more, create opportunities and change their future. (And dream up ways to move their business forward at the expense of yours).
I don’t buy that no one but me and a few other biz savvy therapists has the time to innovate, market and escape the downward spiral of their main income stream.
What Does Time Have to Do With It?
When someone claims “I have no time,” or “I’ll get to it later,” it either means:
- They don’t want change bad enough (and aren’t in enough pain to get up and do something)
- They are afraid (Legitimate. However, Do you know what I’m afraid of? Getting paid 11% less every hour. Starting today.)
or
- They’re lazy and want someone else to rescue them.
I hope most of my colleagues are suffering from the first two bullet points and not the third (though if you were to ask me, many are looking for a rescue, though they would never define themselves as lazy.)
So how do you find the time and the motivation? Here are some ideas you can use today.
Motivation
Imagine that the managed care companies will cut your rates and allowed authorized hours for your services every year for the next 10 years. (Wait! I don’t need to imagine that. It’s happening TODAY!)
Picture a weak economy for the foreseeable future with more and more people needing your services, but no means to pay your full fee.
Believe the reality that costs will continue to rise and your income decreases.
Motivated yet? And don’t be the frog in the pot of water slowly heating up to boiling. You know, being slightly aware that change is happening, but not feeling it badly enough yet to do anything about it. That approach will only burn thought the resources you have now, leaving you with no equity to invest in new ways of growing, healing and making a living.
Time Sources
Look at your daily schedule. Where are you productive and where are you frittering away time? Examine the time you watch TV, surf the internet, waste time being anxious about things you can’t control (like an 11% salary decrease!). You waste time. We all do. Find an hour of this unproductive time and dedicate it to developing a new program or marketing. [And TV is the worst, worst time waster. Pick the few shows you really love and watch them, but don't stare at the tube when the content on there is not worth your time.]
Get up earlier. Many entrepreneurs I know work early in the morning. It’s quiet and they are alert. If you feel you really need that extra hour in the morning, work later in the evening. Or go to bed earlier to wake up earlier — you get the idea. I’m writing this post a 6:30 AM.
Stop using your time fighting to hold on to the old ways of doing thing. I see so many of my colleagues in a frenzy about these cuts in managed care. OK, I get it. It’s discouraging and shocking and hurts the bottom line. But you aren’t going to change a damn thing with your complaints and surveys and meetings with your senators. Health care reform is about CUTTING COSTS. Hello…that means providers make less money. The President of the United States wants costs cut. Your survey does not trump the power of the POTUS. [Sorry for the rant, I just get so frustrated when I see time invested in "solutions" when there is no realistic hope that all those efforts will change anything back to the way things used to be. ]
Take the energy that you would use to try to regain the ground you lost and shift it to create something new.
Trust me, you will feel so much better. Letting go is the first step to moving forward. The old models are dying. Really. I know it’s sad and scary. But what are your options? Make time to change.
When you do carve out an hour to do creative work, turn off all distractions and focus. Often when we have a “free” hour we find all sorts of ways to fritter it away. We reply to old emails, make a cup of coffee and check out the newspaper or pick up a book, plan a vacation. It’s very easy to do anything but the thing we are a bit nervous about doing. Try to stop that.
Take little steps. Many people who I meet through Biz Savvy Therapist admit that all of this innovation is “intimidating.” That’s normal. It’s new and you have no idea how it all works. In so many ways, I’m right there with you. Want to know how I handle that fear of doing it wrong or being a failure? I set a goal I think I can reach and do one thing a day to get me there. Then I”m not overwhelmed and scared because writing one blog post or recording one audio is no big deal, right?
Group like tasks in time blocks. Clump together your client hours on several days and your creative/innovative work on others. I see clients 3 days a week and do my creating the other days. It’s much easier to focus when I have a stretch of 4-6 hours to do this work, rather than try to fit it in here and there between other time demands.
Use the weekends. There are 48 hours on the weekend that are available to you! Even if you used 2 of those, you’d be well on your way to completing that book, writing blog posts or figuring out Twitter.
Avoid the excuse of “no time.” When you hear yourself saying there’s “no time,” stop and think about what you can do to make time. There IS time. There’s always time.
How I Do It
You know I work the way I do so I can be home with my child as much as possible. Since his birth I have worked after he goes to bed, early mornings and several hours every weekend. (I get 7-8 hours a sleep a night, too). Anytime my son has been in daycare or had other caregivers has been the time I see clients and I’ve never been to my office more than 3 days a week in the last 7 years. Now I”m dialing down to 2 days a week, but my income will increase this year.
I watch minimal TV (never before 9 PM), never go to the mall, my house could be better organized and I could always do more laundry. I choose to prioritize time with my family and creating an innovative practice that helps lots of people through multiple services.
Honestly, I’m not special and am certainly not super organized. I just want to make it happen. Does that make sense? How about you?
Photo credit: Alexkerhead via Flikr
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