{"id":2322917,"date":"2024-08-12T06:48:02","date_gmt":"2024-08-12T10:48:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/"},"modified":"2024-08-12T06:59:31","modified_gmt":"2024-08-12T10:59:31","slug":"washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Washington Created The Doctor Shortage And Can&#8217;t Fix It"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwashington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2322917&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article \u2064discusses the ongoing healthcare worker shortage in\u200d the U.S. and attributes it \u200dprimarily to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/zynsurrection-gop-lights-up-schumer-over-nicotine-pouches\/\" title=\"GOP slams Schumer for nicotine pouches: &#039;Zynsurrection!\">excessive government \u200dregulation<\/a> rather than a lack of\u200d funding or resources. The \u2064author argues that the\u2063 proliferation of bureaucratic \u2063measures hampers healthcare providers\u2019 ability to perform their jobs effectively, resulting\u2063 in decreased job satisfaction and ultimately driving many professionals out of\u200d the field.<\/p>\n<p>Key points from the article include:<\/p>\n<p>1. **Regulatory Burdens**: Government regulations\u2064 and federal\u200d legislation create \u200dobstacles for healthcare providers, detracting from the sense of fulfillment\u200d they derive from\u2062 their work. This dissatisfaction contributes to the shortage of\u2064 nurses, therapists, and physicians.<\/p>\n<p>2. \u200d**Psychic Reward**: The article emphasizes the importance\u200b of the &#8220;psychic reward&#8221;\u2014the\u200b intrinsic satisfaction healthcare providers feel when \u2064helping\u200c patients. As regulations\u200c increase,\u2064 this satisfaction \u200cdiminishes,\u2064 leading \u2064to attrition \u2064in \u2062the workforce.<\/p>\n<p>3.\u200b **Bureaucratic Growth**: \u2062The ratio of healthcare\u2062 bureaucrats to clinicians has grown significantly, with the number of healthcare non-clinical positions outpacing the\u2064 number of direct care providers. The funds allocated to support this\u2063 bureaucratic \u200dinfrastructure \u200coften \u2062detract from caregiver compensation.<\/p>\n<p>4. **Impact on Patient Care**: \u200dThe ongoing increase in non-clinical roles contributes to delays in patient \u200ccare \u2062and diminished healthcare accessibility, potentially \u200cleading to &#8220;death-by-queue,&#8221; where patients suffer due to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-richard-tice-says-britons-have-been-brainwashed-into-accepting-nhs-waiting-lists\/\" title=\"Exclusive: Richard Tice Says Britons Have Been \u2018Brainwashed\u2019 Into Accepting NHS Waiting Lists\">long waiting times<\/a>\u2062 for healthcare services.<\/p>\n<p>5. **Proposed Solution**: The author advocates for a reduction in government involvement in\u2063 healthcare,\u200c suggesting that \u200bless\u200d regulation would alleviate the burdens on\u2064 healthcare providers and improve the \u2062overall supply of caregivers.<\/p>\n<p>In sum,\u200d the\u2062 piece critiques the\u2063 existing healthcare framework and calls for significant reform in how healthcare is regulated to address the \u2063caregiver shortage effectively.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/crop-unrecognizable-male-doctor-with-stethoscope-4021775\/\">Karolina Kaboompics\/Pexels<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/12\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Washington%20Created%20The%20Doctor%20Shortage%20And%20Can%E2%80%99t%20Fix%20It&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/12\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Washington%20Created%20The%20Doctor%20Shortage%20And%20Can%E2%80%99t%20Fix%20It&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/12\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/12\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Washington%20Created%20The%20Doctor%20Shortage%20And%20Can%E2%80%99t%20Fix%20It&amp;body=Regulations%20and%20bureaucracy%20are%20the%20primary%20causes%20of%20healthcare%20workforce%20shortages,%20and%20Washington%20keeps%20making%20the%20problem%20worse.%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/12\/washington-created-the-doctor-shortage-and-cant-fix-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Clinical doctors smiled (actually, they grimaced) while reading two recent headlines. The first was &ldquo;Wyden, Blackburn Introduce Bipartisan&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.finance.senate.gov\/chairmans-news\/wyden-blackburn-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-tackle-health-care-workforce-shortages\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Legislation<\/a>&nbsp;to Tackle Health Care Workforce Shortages.&rdquo; This is one more demonstration of Ronald Reagan&rsquo;s prescience when he said in his 1981 Inaugural Address, &ldquo;Government is not the solution to our problem; government&nbsp;is the problem.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Every direct care provider understands from painful daily experience that government regulations stemming from federal legislation are the real reason for shortages.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-258894d72308f0c3416c508ebc750311 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-258894d72308f0c3416c508ebc750311\"><\/div>\n<p>The shortage of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aacnnursing.org\/news-data\/fact-sheets\/nursing-shortage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">nurses<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.counseling.org\/publications\/counseling-today-magazine\/article-archive\/article\/legacy\/a-closer-look-at-the-mental-health-provider-shortage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">therapists<\/a>, and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aamc.org\/news\/press-releases\/new-aamc-report-shows-continuing-projected-physician-shortage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">physicians<\/a>&nbsp;is undeniable and getting worse. Understanding why people are leaving helps to know why they became care providers, especially doctors, given the time, stress, and cost necessary to become one.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The answer is the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanthinker.com\/articles\/2023\/10\/the_real_reason_for_the_kaiser_health_care_strike.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">psychic reward<\/a>, what Maslow called self-actualization. As a nurse shared one day, &ldquo;When my [patients] do well, it feeds my soul.&rdquo; Care providers prove their self-worth to themselves when they help heal a sick person through their personal efforts. The number of Washington advisories, guidelines,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/emergency.cdc.gov\/newsletters\/coca\/020122.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">prohibitions<\/a>, clinical algorithms,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/asprtracie.hhs.gov\/technical-resources\/63\/crisis-standards-of-care\/0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">crisis standards<\/a>, and clinical mandates is literally uncountable. These federal commandments effectively take care decisions out of clinicians&rsquo; hands.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As the number of regulations goes up, the psychic reward shrinks until it is gone. And when the psychic reward goes, so go the care providers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Federal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/no-spike-in-florida-coronavirus-cases-despite-no-mask-mandate\/\" title=\"No Spike in Florida Coronavirus Cases Despite No Mask Mandate\">health care<\/a> regulations make it harder for caregivers to do their jobs, not easier. The security elements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) obstruct communication between clinicians, frustrating them and increasing the likelihood of medical errors. Workers everywhere rightly expect their employers to help them do their jobs, yet caregivers face obstacles everywhere they turn as the federal government tries to&nbsp;<em>protect<\/em>&nbsp;the patients from their supposed fiduciary doctors and nurses.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-9a4c7dc7c12b87d723217cde9fa089b0 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-9a4c7dc7c12b87d723217cde9fa089b0\"><\/div>\n<p>Such &ldquo;protection&rdquo; drives people out of caregiving.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The &ldquo;health care workforce shortage&rdquo; applies to doctors and nurses but not to nonclinical healthcare workers: administrators, agents, bureaucrats, billers, coders, compliance officers, lawyers, managers, etc.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>This number expands every time Washington imposes more regulations. Between 1970 and 2010, the supply of U.S. physicians increased by 100 percent. Over the same time, the number of healthcare&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/fee.org\/articles\/the-chart-that-could-undo-the-us-healthcare-system\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">bureaucrats<\/a>&nbsp;increased by more than 3,000 percent. Texas, for instance, has 50,000 licensed physicians and 62,000 overseers in the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Where does all the money come from to pay healthcare bureaucrats? From payments to caregivers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-8d2c17dc79a375232a86cdc011bf834e fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-8d2c17dc79a375232a86cdc011bf834e\"><\/div>\n<p>To pay for the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/biomedgrid.com\/pdf\/AJBSR.MS.ID.002667.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">BARRCOME<\/a>&nbsp;&mdash; bureaucracy, administration, rules, regulations, compliance, oversight, mandates, enforcement &mdash; in the Affordable Care Act of 2010, President Barack Obama took&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/wonk\/wp\/2012\/08\/14\/romneys-right-obamacare-cuts-medicare-by-716-billion-heres-how\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$716 billion<\/a>&nbsp;out of the Medicare Trust, funds earmarked to pay for seniors&rsquo; hospital care. The Trust is slated to run out of money by 2028. Medicare bureaucrats will still be paid, but seniors won&rsquo;t get medical care.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Increasing numbers of doctors still in practice are refusing to see new Medicaid patients. In a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/document\/d\/107r7HsJ9HnThAwO2cBFPu9o-Bk32GCQG3B-aqbOaGa4\/edit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">survey<\/a>&nbsp;of Texas physicians, where more than 50 percent do not accept new Medicaid patients, the two reasons they give are regulatory burdens and low payment schedules as funds for care providers are&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2OWKbLs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">diverted<\/a>&nbsp;to pay for BARRCOME.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>To suggest that the government will solve the shortage is laughable, given that Washington&rsquo;s over-regulation is the cause of care provider shortages.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The second eye-catching&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/finance.yahoo.com\/video\/healthcare-leads-july-job-growth-134640070.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAMlo_faN6Lwh4mdeGqZ7Kws1HwAgKlCAXB3Jw1tP2WCj7bshdGAbq0c7wYIc5ukWEeUueHbs4O8kwXUzZy4Os5xqIOHnyxPNinHnRKskg1BryKlUt4zO3PdN_uaNG9RZoDJ5VTgjdo0Ad9GLcb8sP5T8IxzDhlcbYFB_UGRBhmii\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">headline<\/a>&nbsp;reads, &ldquo;Healthcare leads July job growth.&rdquo; Yahoo Finance reports, &ldquo;Healthcare led the way with 55,000 new jobs in July. This increase was distributed across various subsectors: home health care services added 22,000 jobs, hospitals contributed 20,000, and nursing and residential care facilities saw a 9,000 job increase.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Not described was how many of these &ldquo;health [] care jobs&rdquo; were care providers and how many were not, i.e., they were bureaucrats. A prior&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/spectator.org\/in-healthcare-job-growth-is-not-always-good\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">report<\/a>&nbsp;showed that at least 90 percent of new healthcare jobs are <a href=\"https:\/\/fee.org\/articles\/the-chart-that-could-undo-the-us-healthcare-system\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">administrative<\/a>. As more nonclinical jobs are added, more money is necessarily diverted away from&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/heartlanddailynews.com\/2023\/06\/third-party-payers-make-health-care-more-expensive-commentary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">patient care<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The result is more&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearhealth.com\/articles\/2023\/02\/28\/healthcare_job_growth_brings_death-by-queueing_to_us_111469.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">death-by-queue<\/a>: more Americans dying while waiting in line for care.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Is it surprising that the shortage of nurses and doctors is worsening when they can see that paying government bureaucrats is more important than paying them to provide patient care? When the system they work in undervalues them, takes away the psychic reward, and hogties them with regulations to protect the patients&nbsp;<em>from them<\/em>?<\/p>\n<p>The true wonder is that any care providers are still willing to put up with this.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The solution for the shortages is simple, though politically radioactive.&nbsp;Since government incursion into the practices of medicine, nursing, and therapy is the root cause, the cure is to withdraw Washington&rsquo;s heavy hand from its illegal and harmful&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nursingpracticejournal.com\/articles\/cjncp-aid1040.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">malpractice<\/a>&nbsp;of health care.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-8142ad7c357e2396e83a9a2e8168f70f fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-8142ad7c357e2396e83a9a2e8168f70f\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Deane Waldman, M.D., MBA, is professor emeritus of pediatrics, pathology, and decision science at the University of New Mexico. He is the former director of the Center for Healthcare Policy at Texas Public Policy Foundation and author of the award-winning book <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/0984768696\">&#8220;Curing the Cancer in U.S. Healthcare: StatesCare and Market-Based Medicine.&#8221;<\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Deane Waldman<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/dwaldman\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/administrative-bloat\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">administrative bloat<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/affordable-health-care-act\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Affordable Health Care Act<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/big-government\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">big government<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/big-medicene\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Big Medicene<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/bureaucracy\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Bureaucracy<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/doctor-shortage\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">doctor shortage<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/doctors\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">doctors<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/health-care-2\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">health care<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/hipaa\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">HIPAA<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/nurses\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">nurses<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Clinical doctors reacted with grimaces to two recent headlines. The first headline read, \u201cWyden, Blackburn Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Tackle Health Care Workforce Shortages.\u201d This situation exemplifies Ronald Reagan&#8217;s insight from his 1981 Inaugural Address when he stated, \u201cGovernment is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.\u201d Every direct care provider knows from painful daily experiences that government regulations resulting from federal legislation are the primary cause of these shortages.<\/p>\n<p>The shortage of nurses, therapists, and physicians is undeniable and worsening. Understanding why individuals leave these professions sheds light on their motivations for entering them in the first place\u2014especially for doctors\u2014considering the time, stress, and financial investment required. The key factor is the intrinsic reward associated with caregiving; as Maslow described it, self-actualization. One nurse expressed this sentiment by saying, \u201cWhen my patients do well, it feeds my soul.\u201d Care providers derive a sense of self-worth from their ability to help heal sick individuals through their efforts.<\/p>\n<p>However, an overwhelming number of Washington advisories and regulations effectively strip clinicians of decision-making power regarding patient care. As regulatory burdens increase, these intrinsic rewards diminish until they vanish entirely. When caregivers no longer feel rewarded psychologically for their work due to excessive regulation and oversight that complicates their roles rather than facilitates them\u2014their motivation wanes.<\/p>\n<p>Federal health care regulations hinder caregivers&#8217; ability to perform their jobs efficiently rather than simplifying processes. For instance, HIPAA\u2019s security measures can obstruct communication among clinicians leading to frustration and a higher risk of medical errors. While employees in various sectors expect support from employers in performing their duties effectively, caregivers face numerous obstacles imposed by federal protections intended for patients but which ultimately drive many out of caregiving roles.<\/p>\n<p>The so-called &#8220;health care workforce shortage&#8221; primarily affects clinical providers like doctors and nurses while nonclinical healthcare workers\u2014including administrators and bureaucrats\u2014continue to proliferate unchecked as more regulations are enacted by Washington. Between 1970 and 2010 alone saw a doubling in U.S. physicians while healthcare bureaucrats surged over 3,000 percent during that same period.<\/p>\n<p>Funding for this administrative expansion comes at the expense of caregiver compensation; President Obama\u2019s Affordable Care Act diverted $716 billion from Medicare Trust funds meant for senior hospital care towards covering bureaucratic costs\u2014a move projected to deplete those funds by 2028 without ensuring adequate medical services for seniors.<\/p>\n<p>Many practicing physicians are now declining new Medicaid patients due largely to regulatory pressures coupled with inadequate payment structures diverting resources away from direct patient care towards bureaucracy-related expenses.<\/p>\n<p>To suggest that government intervention will resolve workforce shortages seems absurd given its role as a contributing factor through overregulation causing provider attrition rates.<\/p>\n<p>The second notable headline stated: \u201cHealthcare leads July job growth,\u201d reporting an addition of 55 thousand new jobs within healthcare sectors during July across various subsectors such as home health services (22k), hospitals (20k), nursing facilities (9k). However unmentioned was how many were actual caregiving positions versus administrative roles\u2014with previous reports indicating upwards of 90% being non-clinical jobs\u2014which further diverts funding away from essential patient services leading inevitably toward increased wait times or even preventable deaths among Americans seeking timely medical attention amidst growing shortages exacerbated by undervaluation within existing systems prioritizing bureaucratic salaries over caregiver remuneration or support mechanisms necessary for effective practice delivery models overall!<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately addressing these shortages requires politically sensitive solutions: reducing governmental interference within medicine\/nursing\/therapy practices since such encroachments represent root causes behind current crises plaguing our healthcare landscape today! <\/p>\n<p>Deane Waldman M.D., MBA serves as professor emeritus at University New Mexico specializing pediatrics\/pathology\/decision science previously directing Center Healthcare Policy Texas Public Policy Foundation authoring award-winning book &#8220;Curing Cancer U.S Healthcare: StatesCare Market-Based Medicine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1285,"featured_media":2322918,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/pexels-karolina-grabowska-4021779-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[37860,37861,37167,37862,4086],"class_list":["post-2322917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-doctor-shortage","tag-government-intervention","tag-healthcare-policy","tag-medical-workforce","tag-washington"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/pexels-karolina-grabowska-4021779-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2322917","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1285"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2322917"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2322917\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2322918"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2322917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2322917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2322917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}