ONE (WEIRD) REASON HEALTH CARE IS SO EXPENSIVE: HOW A PLAN TO LOWER HEALTH CARE COSTS … RAISED HEALTH CARE COSTS
The bit below sounds just like the electricity sector. If we want lower cost electricity we need to get out from under the regulatory constraints we’ve made for ourselves. That’s just one of the benefits of “Consumer Regulated Electricity”. Contact us to learn more and follow us right here on LinkedIn.
“In most states, you can’t build a new hospital without the government’s permission. 35 states (and Washington, D.C.) have what are known as “certificate-of-need” laws — which prevent hospitals from being built without the approval of government planners. In fact, those restrictions even apply to expanding an *existing* hospital. The idea behind the laws was that they’d save money by eliminating redundant services and prevent hospitals from concentrating their services in wealthier neighborhoods. All of which sounds reasonable, except … it didn’t work. In practice, these laws allow existing health care providers to lobby against new competitors. As a result, states with certificate-of-need laws average about 25% fewer hospital beds per capita than states without them. And research has found that they drive up the cost of health care as well.”
