3 ms·

Im not sure I agree with the poster but the argument is something like, “hospitals who kill people receive less business under a free market. Under a regulated

Im not sure I agree with the poster but the argument is something like, “hospitals who kill people receive less business under a free market. Under a regulated one there is less competition for people to choose from.”

gamepsys 3y ago
Health care is one of the most regulated markets. Seems like a good portion of the regulation is about capturing profits for shareholders.
woodruffw 3y ago
I don't think medical care is particularly well modeled as a market: it's not clear that a small town hospital really can have any competition, or that someone in an active medical emergency has any meaningful choice about which hospital they get sent to. Similarly for specialty treatment.
- jliptzin 3y ago
  Also it’s not clear where someone would even look up those statistics even if they had the time to do it
  - edgyquant 3y ago
    Do they need to? In my hometown there is a private owned hospital that basically no one in town goes to because we all had, or knew someone who had, a bad experience there. As an aside, The corporate owner of the hospital declared bankruptcy a few years ago.
  - ChainOfFools 3y ago
    which leads to someone else making a business out of 'objectively' collecting, packaging and disseminating them on behalf of ... the hospital systems.
josho 3y ago
That argument is flawed. A well-run healthcare system keeps people out of the healthcare system. Eg. every $1 spent in preventive care avoids $10 (not actual numbers) in other costs down the road through surgeries and other services. Translate into capitalist terms, our fee-for-service model heavily incentivizes increasing profits through poor patient outcomes.
- edgyquant 3y ago
  Sure, if people are dumb sheep with no choice but to keep going. But if a hospital actually fixed people more people are likely to choose that one which results in more business for them and less for their rent seeking competitor.

gamepsys 3y ago

Health care is one of the most regulated markets. Seems like a good portion of the regulation is about capturing profits for shareholders.

woodruffw 3y ago

I don't think medical care is particularly well modeled as a market: it's not clear that a small town hospital really can have any competition, or that someone in an active medical emergency has any meaningful choice about which hospital they get sent to. Similarly for specialty treatment.

jliptzin 3y ago
Also it’s not clear where someone would even look up those statistics even if they had the time to do it
- edgyquant 3y ago
  Do they need to? In my hometown there is a private owned hospital that basically no one in town goes to because we all had, or knew someone who had, a bad experience there. As an aside, The corporate owner of the hospital declared bankruptcy a few years ago.
- ChainOfFools 3y ago
  which leads to someone else making a business out of 'objectively' collecting, packaging and disseminating them on behalf of ... the hospital systems.

josho 3y ago

That argument is flawed. A well-run healthcare system keeps people out of the healthcare system. Eg. every $1 spent in preventive care avoids $10 (not actual numbers) in other costs down the road through surgeries and other services. Translate into capitalist terms, our fee-for-service model heavily incentivizes increasing profits through poor patient outcomes.

edgyquant 3y ago
Sure, if people are dumb sheep with no choice but to keep going. But if a hospital actually fixed people more people are likely to choose that one which results in more business for them and less for their rent seeking competitor.