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21 sats \ 1 reply \ @kepford OP 15 Aug \ on: Are Monopolies Always Bad? econ

Hospital Monopolies

In the US, at least most states there are boards that decide if they will allow a hospital to be built. Maybe the intentions are well placed but the results are not great. These boards are highly influenced by the companies that operate the hospitals. As you can imagine they have a massive interest in maintaining their monopolies.
I once lived in a county where there was only one hospital within a 45 drive. This hospital is terrible. I know multiple people that have had bad outcomes. I know people that have worked at this hospital and confirmed the issues. It is well known to be a bad hospital. Even larger hospitals in the surrounding area are aware. People that work at this hospital say they would never use it unless they had no other option(Obviously in some situations you can drive to another hospital and in others you can't).
I have a family member that was a local politician at the time. I asked him about the hospital and if there was anything that could be done. This is when I learned about how it worked. He informed me that he had tried to get another hospital to come into the community. There was interest but every time the idea was brought to the board that approves hospitals it was denied. He shared that the existing hospital was financially supporting local, state, and national politicians that would make sure that never happened.
So the state was enforcing a monopoly with the idea of it being best for the community. But in reality the corporation was buying off the politicians to keep competition out. I'm sure there are many stories like this around the country but I thought I would share my story. To this day there is only one hospital in this county and it is still terrible. I have a family member that very likely will be suing this hospital.
I'm fairly knowledgeable about how government works and politics and before this conversation with my politician family member I had no idea how hospital construction was centralized. The citizens of this community are pretty much in the dark. Due to how democracy works it is unlikely things will change. The politicians that are bought off are powerful and do not like trouble makers like my family member. They force them out.
As @SimpleStacker said, often the cure is worse than the disease.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Bell_curve 16 Aug
Plus hospitals rely so much on government funding in the form of Medicare and Medicaid that they have to do whatever the state or federal government mandates.
It's unconscionable that patients in your county are stuck with one terrible hospital.
Imagine a hospital that accepted no Medicare, no Medicaid, only 'private' insurance? I put private in quotes because 'private' health insurance is also a cartel. A hospital that didn't rely on government reimbursements would actually break even or better and run more efficiently.
There is an excellent urgent care clinic in my neighborhood. They are not part of any insurance network. They accept cash and PPO insurance. No HMO and no Medicaid. The clinic has been in business since 1984 and patient satisfaction is high. I have never had a terrible experience there. Some of the Physician Assistants are reluctant to prescribe certain medications but that's a relatively minor problem.
No Medicaid and no HMO is the model for urgent care and hospitals.
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