“Ralph J Williamson MD” (alias?) seems to be confused about how health law enforcement actually works (in my thankfully limited experience.)

… 30,000 physicians can’t be wrong. If practice fusion was an illegal product, or an unethical product, it would have already been shut down. Put your money where your mouth is and challenge them, Mr. Yates. Report them to the feds, call the police, call your politician, tell the press, sue them. … So I would like you to bring them down before I make the move.

First, I don’t think I’ve been ambiguous about “putting my money where my mouth and challenging them.” I do publish on a public website under my own name, and I do file reports with the appropriate agencies when it’s my business to do so (for whatever that is worth, which is zero), but I don’t know what you’re expecting… a bazooka? The Men in Black? Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law?

Second, you know what the big problem in healthcare is right now? Medicare in Connecticut stopped all payment this month. Yah, oops! the government healthcare payers missed a payment. “Immediate Financial Catastrophe” is probably higher on the checklist of things for “the government” to “fix” right now over some snipity Blueshirt MD super douche throwdown over a blog comment about some new Website! …dot com run by 10 people in California.

Third, every big provider in region that I know about is currently being audited for “compliance.” “Big” means “hospitals” and “nursing homes the size of hospitals.” “Compliance?” You know how that works? Here’s how: Government Auditors: “We’ll get back to you.” You know what that means? Doesn’t matter! Do you think that the government is in the “Free Audits for Fun” business? “Hey guys, um, we couldn’t find anything wrong even though we don’t audit you without knowing that you’re already guilty of something largely because we are the sole arbitors of what and who is guilty whenever when and why, but could you, like, please try harder to not bill medicare now? Cause, we don’t have any money to pay you, and you’re probably guilty as hell anyways? Is that cool? Thanks guys.”

Yah, they’re fucked.

But the good news for idiot medical students who think that a free and easy Practice Fusion account and a fresh MD makes them a “threat” to the “establishment” is: “No, you’re not. Please continue to avoid regular employment despite your expensive educations by the grace of there actual problems real adults have to solve now. We are not worried that sometimes you smoke pot and may own a Che Guevara t-shirt because he is dead and because buying t-shirts can be positive consumer activity which we as Americans endorse and appreciate. Thank you.”

Fourth, selling patient data is wrong, even if you don’t get caught or get in trouble. It’s also stupid if you don’t even get paid for it in cash.

Fifth, even a single lawsuit is expensive. Very expensive. And one lawsuit means you’re on the Law Menu. If you lose, it’s feeding season. Would you take a bet to earn an extra $1k per month if, in exchange, you had to pilot an explosion on wheels while half asleep twice a day at speeds which would instantly kill you over several miles also swarming with other explosions on wheels also piloted by other half asleep people whom you’d recognize at the DMV? Yes. So… never mind.

Six, law is slow. Even if God told George W. Bush right now that everybody at Practice Fusion had to be assassinated immediately, practicefusion.com would still probably accept your new user registration. In practice, the law is going to be even slower than that. So, I think I’m not going to be able to “save” you this time from big bad Practice Fusion, Dr. Ralph. Sorry.

Aside: I have no idea what motivated this comment, but if “Ralph” were a sock puppet, I am struggling to fathom the poor judgement of engaging me in some blog comment defense of Practice Fusion. My motive is usually provoked adolescent rage. It’s not complicated or dishonest. If I don’t have any new reason to like something I hated before, why would I change my mind later given that same information? In fact, the only new information I have is that somebody thinks that by repeating the same information is itself veiled threat. Like, if this was a clever attempt to get me to post more about Practice Fusion, it worked, but I don’t see how me not liking Practice Fusion and saying so changes the law I cited, the moral hazards of medical privacy I described, and the fact that other companies including Google already offer better, similar services for similar prices with more honest terms. For example, mdon-line.com is OK, and they’ll process your billing, and they seem to be doing OK, even though I’ve never been pestered by their blueshirts or blog spam. Like, it’s not that hard. Just ignore me. Then, I do other things. Problem solved.