Don't Let Your HMO Kill You : How to Wake Up Your Doctor, Take Control of Your Health and Make Managed Care Work for You

More than 60 percent of Americans with medical insurance are enrolled in HMOs, but few are happy about it.

Procedures are denied, doctors are rushed, patients are frustrated - it seems as if everyone has an HMO nightmare story to tell.

Now two accomplished doctors, including the author of the "New York Times" bestseller "The Arthritis Cure" , offer readers a guide to understanding, dealing with, and getting the most out of their physicians and HMOs.

Setting forth a series of survival strategies for readers of any age, the authors focus on the vital doctor-patient relationship, and on the importance of prevention.

They show readers how to form an alliance with their physicians in order to obtain the care they need, as well as how to undertake prevention programs.

Best of all, they offer readers advice on how to achieve better service from their HMO than they ever thought possible, including tips on how to: turn a 10-minute office visit into a learning; avoid miles of red tape; research your own medical condition; quickly turn an administrator's "no" into a "yes"; get the tests you need, not just the ones they think you need; and predict your own future health care needs. Managed care is here to stay. But with the right combination of self-reliance, knowledge, and healthy living, good care "is" possible.

For anyone worried about what their HMO will do to them, this book offers a guide to finding out what managed care can do "for" you.