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A novel idea: considering the impact of health care “reform” on doctors

October 3, 2009 by Alex Epstein

Investor’s Business Daily recently released the disturbing results of a survey of doctors’ reaction to the government’s proposed “reform.” The most dramatic finding is that 45% of doctors would consider retirement if the plan were imposed. 45%. Can you imagine the devastation that would occur if anywhere near this percentage of doctors left the field?

Now, one survey doesn’t prove anything—but that raises the question: Why don’t we hear about surveys like this all the time, from anyone and everyone who conducts polls on health care? Why are there so few inquiries into what a given health care policy will do to doctors, the primary people producing the health care we are talking about every day?

Think about how many statistics, sob-stories, joy-stories, etc you have heard about patients under any number of systems — compared to the amount of concern you have heard about doctors; I’ve hardly heard any. Yet doctors are the people who provide the care that the patient consumes. Any discussion of health care that does not recognize the rights and achievements of doctors is morally and economically warped.

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