"Factory Hospitals"

[lima_pcp]

Give this a read.

Coincidentally enough, I was using something similar to this idea as an argument against the slated healthcare reform with a friend last month. I had no idea it was already happening.

Comments

[bdunbar]

Have no fear: if health care reform happens the way the Democrats want it to we'll never see factory hospitals in this country.

This is what I think: factory hospitals would cut costs, enable better qauality of care for patients, enable more people to be treated for less money, and radically change the way healthcare happens in this country.

And none of that will happen when the government owns healthcare. The various factions of the current system will lobby the government to maintain the status quo. Anyone who wants genuine reform will be locked out.

Prediction: in twenty years if you need a service done at the hospital, you can wait in line at the hospital down the street for months and months for treatment that was cutting edge in 2009.

Or fly to Mexico, India or the Caymans, stay overnight and return home, fixed with the latest in the medical arts circa 2029.

[lima_pcp]

Yep. That pretty much sums it up.

Absolutely NO ONE is talking about really increaing the supply; but rather only enabling demand.

[plural]

That's because its easier, cheaper and less risky not to expand supply to compensate for increases in demand as then you can increase the rates you charge faster than your overhead increases.

[lima_pcp]

In the absence of any real competition, yep.