Comments on: Will You Find a Doctor When You Need One?

By: Eric D. Dixon

Eric D. Dixon — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:13:17 +0000

Mandating that nurse practitioners are the only ones allowed to perform certain services is just as bad as mandating that doctors are the only ones to perform them. Neither system is characterized by freedom or allows price mechanisms to allocate labor efficiently.

By: Stephen

Stephen — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:27:20 +0000

Eric, Many years ago the Soviet Union tried to establish a program that depended on what would be the equivalent of Nurse Practitioners (they were called “feldshers” Фельдшер). It was notorious for establishing a program where patients had to bribe physicians to take personal responsibility for their care. The result was a system where people paid “under the table” for physicians to do the things that would otherwise be considered a regular part of their jobs. Maybe that is one possible eventuality in the development of a “free market” health care economy.

By: Eric D. Dixon

Eric D. Dixon — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:12:28 +0000

There’s no practical reason to insist that a doctor be the one to do things that a nurse practitioner can also competently do. It’s a particularly bad idea to cement that personal preference through legislation that binds people other than onesself.

By: Stephen

Stephen — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:41:26 +0000

Nathan, you might be right, but is that what you want? When you are old and grey, do you want your primary care provider to be an MD or a Nurse Practitioner? If it makes no difference to you, then that is what we will get in this country. But if you want that person to be an MD, you need to contact your senator now.

By: Nathan

Nathan — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:29:16 +0000

the big players don’t want primary doctors. it will be 2 docs overseeing 8 np and everything will be guided by computer algorithims.

By: Is There a Doctor in the House? | www.statehousecall.org

Is There a Doctor in the House? | www.statehousecall.org — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:26:24 +0000

[...] Stephen Feman of the Show-Me Institute asks “Will You Find a Doctor When You Need One?” [...]

By: Eric D. Dixon

Eric D. Dixon — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:13:44 +0000

The U.S. Dept. of Make-Work Stimulus Employment for Life, a fictional government agency created by David Stokes for satirical purposes in this blog entry.

By: Feman

Feman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:51:29 +0000

Thanks for the comment, but our readers may not understand it. What is the USDOMWSEFL???

By: vroman

vroman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:54:28 +0000

Maybe the USDOMWSEFL will start deputizing heart surgeons.