Yeah, but why is the same situation present, and the same explanation given, in Poland, EU? Or, seeing from other comments, plenty other countries around the world?
I'm seconding 'viraptor here - this isn't a good enough explanation. It doesn't stand up to scrutiny, and doesn't mesh well with day-to-day experience. Individual doctors I know seem to have very little influence over anything, and they're first in line to the protests about working conditions and pay.
One way to drive "medical costs" down is to ensure that the supply of medical care is low. This also drives prices up. This means that the incentives of the regulatory body are directly contrary to the incentives of the people supposedly benefiting from the regulation.
(And doctors and hospitals are happy with this, because such a system boils down to telling them "we want you to do less work, but for more money".)
3. (Tangentially, note that the general model of "restrict supply, subsidize demand" is incredibly common. It's popular both ways; the first part helps a small but politically active and highly motivated group, and the second part pretends to help the populace in general.)
> 2. State provision of medical care corrupts the system, as I describe sidethread
How is this at play (from the article we are commenting on)?
The article does not mention once: "medicare", "medicaid", "regulation", "law", "government" - once.
If anything, it's the inverse. You have it bass-ackwards, the private hospital, the for-profit system is driving things like:
> I delivered my third child with my own hands because the obstetrician was stuck in a traffic jam. The following morning I went to work because if I didn’t 12 patients have to miss their surgeries, 2 anaesthetists and about 8 nurses will miss out on their day’s income. More importantly, admin would not be happy because a cancelled operating list is a huge financial loss to the hospital.
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> 1. Doctors have a lot of political influence because they are popular. This means they can get away with things that other industries mostly can't.
Can you clarify how this doctor exerts any type of political influence? They have a sleeping bag in their car they sleep at their job so often and are lamenting they barely get to see their family. I don't see your point at all being illustrated in this article, at all.
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> "And doctors and hospitals are happy with this, because such a system boils down to telling them "we want you to do less work, but for more money".
I get the feeling this doctor is on the verge of suicide from being over-worked. Do you think the person that wrote this article would agree with your statement?
To the contrary, it would be strange if other mixed economies were somehow immune to this. There's a reason agricultural subsidies are corrupt in both the US and EU, and why zoning laws are a problem in both the US and EU. The same incentives will lead to the same outcome.
I'm seconding 'viraptor here - this isn't a good enough explanation. It doesn't stand up to scrutiny, and doesn't mesh well with day-to-day experience. Individual doctors I know seem to have very little influence over anything, and they're first in line to the protests about working conditions and pay.