[bowenjin]

The work performed by doctors is not much more difficult than that of a mechanic or some trade skill. The difference in pay, at least in the US, is due to the artificial barriers of entry such as requiring 12 years of education, 4 years of which (undergrad) is almost entirely irrelevant to the actual skill of practicing medicine.

In addition to this constraint on supply, the demand is inflated by medical insurance which makes consumers price insensitive and produces a "use it or lose it" mentality where people are compelled get certain services they don't really need to not let the unused budget expire.

The solution is to increase supply by making medical education a 4 year program that has no undergrad prerequisite and no residency postrequisite like it is in many parts of the world and also reducing the unnecessary demand by removing any government requirement that employers provide medical insurance or any subsidy towards getting medical insurance.

[firejake308]

I agree with removing undergrad but not residency. The things I learned in undergrad are largely useless. However, residency is important because it allows freshly minted doctors to practice under some degree of supervision for the first 3-7 years of seeing patients. The gradual increase in autonomy during residency is important, and it's my main gripe with the PA system that makes no distinction between a PA fresh out of school and one that's been practicing for 30 years.