re: What are the economics of Affordable Care Act?

quote:

---

I work in healthcare admin at one of the largest hospitals in the country. I did a considerable amount of my undergrad and graduate work debating the pros and cons of nationalized healthcare.

There is a lot of misinformation and confusion about Obamacare. I notice a number of folks here blaming Obamacare for decisions their employers made. In many cases Obamacare has been a convenient excuse for employers to reduce their benefit expenditures on their employees.

The argument for nationalized healthcare is that the single payer system as it exists elsewhere is more efficient in terms of dollars spent to deliver care. This is an undeniable fact which is not up to debate. The data also suggests that people in countries with nationalized healthcare generally live longer than Americans so even quality is difficult to debate. Where the debate exists is whether or not nationalized care is as efficent in terms of timeliness and whether this will meet the expectations of America's immediate gratification oriented society.

Will Physicians and hospitals make less? The data from overseas says yes.

Will hospitals survive? We survived the DRA under Reagan and prospered and will do it again.

Will MD's bemoan Obamacare as driving MD's to quit medicine? Yes they will in spite of the fact that the 2013 graduating class of newly minted Physicians was the largest in American history and 2014 will pump out even more.

---

An educated opinion. Finally.

1. Makes sense that it will be more efficent from an economic standpoint.

That was the #1 goal of Obamacare.

2. Doctors and hospitals make less. Fine, good, don't much care. They can take a haircut, most make plenty as it is and if they don't like it, go do something else. Healthcare costs are absurd as it is, even for a short 10 minute doctor visit.

3.

quote:

---

2013 graduating class of newly minted Physicians was the largest in American history and 2014 will pump out even more.

---

Surprise, surprise.

Sorta reminds me of the flat tax debate. People always say, "lets have a flat tax" or "I support the flat tax". But they have no idea what they are really advocating. I did my big post graduate study (similar to a thesis) on the pro and cons of a flat tax in the U.S., then gave a presentation on it. The overwhelming conclusion of my research was that the U.S. would NEVER have a flat tax and if people fully understood all the ancillary consequences of switching from our current system to a flat tax, their would be very few actual supporters.