And those pricing distortions are due to significant government-imposed regulations and restrictions that tightly limit the supply of doctors and medical services, even in the face of increasing demand.
Government regulations have been dragging back price of care for ages. Multi-month waiting lines to see a doctor are largely about price ceilings. If docs could price up, their waiting lists would go down commensurately.
Constrained physician supply doesn't do much when physicians can't raise prices in the face of greater demand.
People in these discussions always make things about physician costs. The majority of expenditures in the healthcare system are on drugs and equipment, followed by procedures - physician visits make up a tiny fraction of that.
That's false, but why let the truth get in the way?
The limitation on doctors in the U.S. is based on the available funding for residents. The government supplies the money because private institutions largely are unwilling to do so.
Constrained physician supply doesn't do much when physicians can't raise prices in the face of greater demand.
People in these discussions always make things about physician costs. The majority of expenditures in the healthcare system are on drugs and equipment, followed by procedures - physician visits make up a tiny fraction of that.