Physician licensure has created a cartel. There I said it and I said it out loud. The right to practice medicine has high barriers to entry, both in terms of high standards and high costs. It takes 7-to-11 years beyond college to train a new physician, but it really begins long before medical school.
Category: Single-Payer/Medicare-for-All
Does Medicare Underpay Physicians? Yes, No and Sometimes
There is a shortage of physicians in the United States. There is especially a shortage of primary care physicians willing to treat Medicare enrollees. People nearing the age of Medicare eligibility are often advised to begin searching for a primary care physician who accepts Medicare a year ahead of time.
Data published in 2020 by the Association of American Medical Colleges estimates that the U.S. could see a shortage of 54,100 to 139,000 physicians by 2033. That shortfall is expected to span both primary- and specialty-care fields.
The Advantages (and Disadvantages) of Medicare Advantage
Traditional Medicare has advantages and disadvantages. Traditional Medicare involves Part A (hospitalization) Part B (doctors and clinics), Part D (drugs). Parts B and D require additional premiums. Furthermore, traditional Medicare has unlimited cost sharing, that runs 20% of the total cost. Most enrollees in traditional Medicare opt to buy a separate supplemental insurance policy to cover their cost sharing.
Friday Links
- Even moderate drinking can interfere with your sex life.(NYT)
- Medicare is spending $800 million a year on stents that are unnecessary and put patients at risk of complications like stroke, heart attack and death.
- Yglesias takes a critical look at the idea that non-pharmaceutical Covid interventions didn’t work.
- Scott Atlas: What to do in the next pandemic.
- Trump’s plan to bring back mental institutions for the homeless is serious.
- Why is the MSM ignoring 400 American “hostages” in Gaza?