Nixing Certificate of Need laws
Posted by Moonage on 22 Sep 2006 | Tagged as: Health Care Debate
I have long contended certificate of need laws inhibit competition and progress in the health care field, allowing providers who control the existing CON’s to charge basically whatever they want due to restricted competition. Now, it appears, SOME people are agreeing with me:
Well, it’s about time. I couldn’t readily find a list of states that still enforce CON’s, but I know not all do. My experience has been primarily in Kentucky, Mississippi, and Florida. Florida doesn’t have any, everyone has to be licensed to do almost anything. The result in Florida has been rabid competition where only the most efficient survive. In Kentucky, wasteful and over-charging hospitals and clinics charge anything they want to the general public. This is in a state where the median income is one of the lowest in the country. There is absolutely nothing anyone can do about it so long as those hospitals et al meet the terms of their CON, which says nothing about pricing outside of state regulations ( the private sector and private insurance ). Allowing competition will allow others to provide cheaper services if there is a demand in the market. In my particular town, the demand is there, but the state has refused to issue any CON’s. Therefore, these people of Appalachia are forced to pay whatever rate that one hospital chooses to charge. The answer to that problem is eliminating CON’s entirely, and that is what the Kentucky Medical Association is now endorsing. This is the first time in my life I am endorsing the KMA’s recommendations. And, I’ve been a medical services provider in several facilities.
This is big folks. Although I am citing Kentucky as the example, it needs to be done everywhere if we want to allow more progress and cheaper services. Those that can pay for those services should have the choice, those that can not should be allowed to find the cheapest provider. That’s free market, that’s what the US is all about.
1 Comment »
on 29 Nov 2006 at 9:33 am 1.Gidget Muse said …
If the Health Care field was a free market then this would work but it is most defintily not. Medicare and Medicaid decide what hospitals are allowed to receive in charges from these patients. What kind of free market is required to give services with out pay?
You are wrong. Florida does have a CON law. It works quite well. See a certificate of need law makes sure that not-for-profits and community hospitals keep the money making services. With out CON money making services go to the speciality hospitals and the community hospitals are stuck with caring for the indigent and providing services that lose money. I am suprised that someone would support taking away CON in Kentucky where there is such a big indigent population. The fall out would be catrostrophic. Who would provide care for those who can’t pay? The speciality hospitals? I think not!