I went to my yearly exam in May, and yesterday got the 'Explanation of Benefits' from my health insurance company. If you've never seen one before, it pretty much outlines the charges sent in by the doctor, what the discout is for going to a 'network doctor', what the insurance pays, and what I pay. I just looked at the rate that my doctor charges...and I've decided that I must rethink my rates.

Figure that I got billed for an hour--between the time to get the vital statistics, the waiting, the exam, and then returning to my normal state, that's fair. The doctor charged $200. She charges $200 an hour?

Ok, I have more schooling than she does--at least for the doctorate part, as an MD takes 3-4 years and a PhD takes 4-8 years (8 in my case). But, she has to have malpractice insurance, which is quite expensive, whereas I have nothing of the sort. She does have to 'rent' her space--perhaps, as she might be a partner in her office--so factor in a modicum of costs there. But while she might charge me for an hour's worth of time, she probably can see 2-3 patients in an hour for yearly exams.

Still...she's still getting much more per hour than I am, I reckon. Hmmmmmmmmm...ok, this needs to change. I DEMAND EQUAL PAY!

Oops, sorry, forgot my place. Back to the books now *shuffle shuffle shuffle*