𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐨𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟖 𝐰𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐞. 𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟖, 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐧 𝟖𝟐.𝟏%. Medicare’s physician payment formula (the Conversion Factor)? Down 9.9%. That’s not “fiscal responsibility.” That’s institutional gaslighting. 𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞, 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬, 𝐂𝐄𝐎 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡. But the doctors treating Medicare patients? They’re being asked to do more with less, year after year, because “𝐡𝐞𝐲, 𝐰𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞”, while the cost of running a practice skyrockets. If the American people want Congress to preserve access to care for aging Americans, it’s time to speak up and tie Medicare’s payment formula to inflation, just like their own salaries. 𝐔𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧, 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐥𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐝𝐨𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐨’𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞. They’re busy trying to survive the 20th century in the 21st. #HealthcarePolicy #Medicare #PhysicianBurnout #InflationMath #FixTheFormula

Medicare’s message to doctors: “Do more, get paid less.” 2025 conversion factor: $32.35 2015 conversion factor: $35.93 A decade of cuts while demands explode. This isn’t reform—it’s sabotage. In 2025, the Medicare conversion factor will be lower than it was in 2015. A decade later, doctors are getting paid less per unit of work—while inflation, admin burden, and burnout have all skyrocketed.

#MarchMadness spotlight on Dr. E. Lyle Cain, MD, the all-star team physician keeping @AlabamaMBB in championship form! 🩺🙌 @AndrewsSportMed #Orthopedics #TeamPhysician

Congratulations to Dr. Lyle Cain & Dr. Jeff Dugas for being recognized on Will Carroll’s Under the Knife Top Ten list of baseball sports surgeons for 2025! They are honored to carry on the legacy and standard set by Dr. James Andrews. View List ➡️ shorturl.at/Q8t7

I felt like writing a post in defense of physicians. We seem to be getting a lot of crap recently. But I don’t know really where to start or what say. There is so much cynicism and bad faith and really plain unhidden contempt these days. But why? Because we can’t fix you? And never could? Because you want us to be something we are not? A coach. A trainer. A knower of all things nutrition and all things non-pharmaceutical. A knower of every little niche thing you’re into. That isn’t how we are taught or trained. But that’s our fault somehow that the reality of us doesn’t meet with the expectation of you? You’re mad about how we don’t have long periods of time for you and this can lead to less accurate or optimal diagnosis or treatment. You’re mad the drugs cost a lot. You’re mad you pay for health insurance and it seems like it never pays for much. Yet, none of those phenomena are the fault of physicians. We’re mad about those things too. You’re mad about Covid. And vaccines. A pandemic we didn’t create. Nor other endemic viruses we had anything to do with. You blame us for the vaccines and policies put into place by politicians bureaucrats as if we are personally responsible. You get mad we make a good salary. Tell us we only make this money because we did dirty tricks to prevent there from being enough doctors. Decisions made decades ago based on predictions that seemed reasonable then but turned out wrong now that those of us working currently had nothing to do with. Our knowledge, experience and expertise downplayed. All that is needed out there is a smart teenager with an AI and access to any chemical they want. I don’t even know how you even begin going after addressing all of it. It’s rather daunting. I’m not sure I can, so I won’t try. The thing is I don’t owe anyone any explanations or apologies. I’ve showed up every gd of this job to be the best doc I could for the people the Lord put in my path. And I’ve manned the f*cking wall against the dragons and barbarians with honor for a decade. I run into the rooms of the sick when everyone else is running out. I’ve stood in the gaps between life and death and fought hard for everyone, even the ones I lost. And you never really ever forget the ones you lose. It’s been nights, weekends, holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, & kids sporting events. I’ve taken those hits to my health and to my family life for the same people who just want to sh*t all over me and my profession today and it’s so heartbreaking & disappointing. I guess maybe you were disappointed by a doctor at some point. We clearly aren’t infallible. We have bad days too. You can see the burnout in the way they make many physicians in clinic practice. I don’t know what to tell you about the guys that are really awful. They do exist. They also aren’t all or even most physicians. Most of what everyone is mad about has nothing to really do with us. It’s policies and laws made bureaucrats, politicians & corps. We simply exist in it. Try to work inside the crazy nonsense ourselves. We’ve never had a “lobby” and it might be interesting to see what things would look like if we actually did. There are people working in this now. But mostly physicians have been too busy just being docs to get all caught up in any of it. There is barely anything left after a week in clinic for my family and some working out let alone some cynical ploy or play to keep it hard for people to become physicians. I don’t know if enough people really understand that. How really taxing and exhausting the work is. I wouldn’t wish the responsibility on anyone either. Heavy is the white coat … This post probably won’t change any minds of the bad faith actors but I do hope it in some way humanizes us to you if only in some small way. I’m just one guy fighting the good fight. On tonight actually and holding down the fort. If any are in need of my expertise, and I hope not (no one meets me in a good day), I’m here.

Join Dr. Lyle Cain and @DrCoyner on December 3 for a Nightcap discussing NIL and the legal landscape of college athletics. Explore how recent legal changes are reshaping college sports. Register now: ow.ly/TF7S50U1Fuv

My dad once pulled me from practice because I didn’t stop a couple of my teammates when they were horsing around. He made me run all practice. I don’t understand at the time. I was 12. Afterwards I asked him why he made me run. I hadn’t done anything wrong and I always practiced hard. He told me: “It’s not what you did, it’s what you didn’t do. You are called to be a leader of men and a champion. Act accordingly.” He was saying that I, as the leader, should have stepped up and held my teammates accountable. I failed that day. Men are softer than baby turds in the rain these days. On the field we could always pick those guys out. We would attack those guys harder. We wanted to challenge them and see what they were made of. Strong men do that to each other. They expose weaknesses that need to be addressed and strengthened. I was one of those weak men for a short time of my life. Sensitive. Emotional. Spiritually weak. I was physically and mentally strong. Still, I struggled emotionally and most of all, spiritually. Never again. Vote for your children, vote against weakness. Vote for your families, free speech, freedom. Hold others accountable! We have to do that. Been holding this in for too long. Thanks for reading. If you agree, please repost or comment. If you don’t agree feel free to comment and take your emotions out on me. I really don’t care anymore since I don’t find words offensive. But I do wish you the best sincerely. -Luc

Also...if any of my kids were to unfortunately tear their ACLs, I wouldnt think twice about getting BPTB graft. No question. Thanks for coming to my lecture. 😀

Maybe this will help get the funds moving #CTESPN @KamalaHarris @Tim_Walz @POTUS

Embrace the Moment. 👊 #RollTide | @Gatorade

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Exactly 50 years ago tomorrow morning Tommy John was on Dr. Frank Jobe’s surgery table having an operation that would change the face of sports medicine and the sport of baseball. All of us who take of these athletes should spend a few minutes thinking about the trust and belief these two men had in each other to attempt something never done before that would end up benefitting so many people 🙏

Dear ACL docs We don't think the QT is the future of ACL reconstruction. It's a viable option but it is NOT the future. If it is, then we need to reconsider our RTP protocols and better understand how to rehab it because we PT's (many of us!) dislike it as a graft option. Sincerely Sports PT of 20 years PTG guy!

The Standard Returns Saturday #RollTide

Chills

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#LMORT #ACLR #orthotwitter #BTB

#RAMP #RevACLR #orthotwitter #BTB

This is like watching a rematch of IMG vs Bishop Sycamore.