"The greatest health care problem in Pennsylvania is access. It is, in a sense, the perfect storm. Pennsylvania is responsible for one of the highest malpractice premiums in the country, but we are close to last in reimbursement. The cost of practicing medicine is steadily increasing, and each year reimbursements are less. As a result, we’re seeing more and more physicians leave.” Barry J. Snyder, MD, FAAOS
Motivated by this issue—and others facing Pennsylvania physicians—Dr. Snyder has become a familiar face on the political scene.
He sits on the governing boards of organizations that advocate for physicians in Harrisburg and Washington, DC—including the Pennsylvania Medical Society, the Pennsylvania Orthopedic Society, and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons.
Dr. Snyder is on the Medical Society’s Board of Trustees, serves as the president of the Bucks County Medical Society; is on the Board of Councilors of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Society, and the Board of Directors; and is a past president of the Philadelphia Orthopaedic Society.
"Little, if anything, can be accomplished on an individual level. We look to organizations to achieve that purpose,” Dr. Snyder says.
He also contributes to the political action committees of the State Society, the American Medical Association, and his specialty societies, including the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Society.
Yet, Dr. Snyder admits that he is not, by nature, a political animal.
Physicians have always been trained to manage our patients and everything else follows,” Dr. Snyder says.
During his 30-year career, Dr. Snyder has worked hard in the political arena to protect this essential part of being a physician. He said he has seen some improvements on issues like medical liability and patient care but there is much that has not yet been accomplished. The solo orthopedic specialist says he has seen the most success in his own practice.
"I don’t see 30 to 40 patients in one afternoon. I believe in the old values of spending time with patients, talking with patients,” Dr. Snyder says.
"My greatest overall sense of personal accomplishment has been that I have been able to preserve that quality of care and that I can give time to organized medicine for the sake of our patients and our profession,” he adds.