Now I guess I'm arguing against my point, but I think these numbers are out of whack.
I don't think the US limits the number of new doctors per year. That would surprise me. I do think the AMA or whatever has a vested interest in controlling the supply of physicians, because it props up salaries.
That said, it is certainly not the case that US doctors average $1m/yr in salary. There are some doctors that make that much or more, and different specializations make different salaries on average, but the overall average is more like $225k/yr.
Finally, while I am not going to argue about the benefits of deregulation - we do have to make sure people actually get appropriate care - it is the case that practices across the country are being bought up by companies like HCA. This seems to lead to the 'enshittification' phenomenon as applied to medicine. The parent companies demand more efficiency, leading to office staff having to handle more patients and more work than before, and doctors having to see more patients in the same amount of time as before. Quality, from the perspective of the patient, suffers. I don't think deregulation fixes this.
I don't think 'the market' is a good solution to healthcare. When I think of healthcare, I think of people who are sick, or hurt, or whatever, and they need to get some help. If there is ever a time where having to weigh pros and cons of available services while shopping around to find the best deal is a good outcome, asking people to do this when they are hurt or sick is not it.
I think the limit that the parent was talking about is related to the number of student doctor seats at hospitals. That is a real thing, and the AMA heavily defends it.
> That said, it is certainly not the case that US doctors average $1m/yr in salary. There are some doctors that make that much or more, and different specializations make different salaries on average, but the overall average is more like $225k/yr.
The average primary care physician makes $265K/year.
Among specialists, the average is $382K/year.
Not sure where where you're getting an "overall average" of $225K. In fact, the blended average is $352K/year.
I looked around at several sites like that one, and saw 'averages' quoted all over the place. That's why I said 'more like 225k/yr' instead of declaring that to be the average.
Deregulate medicine and watch the free market dramatically improve quality of care, time with each doctor and costs.