This is the beginning of the unintended consequences of socialized medicine in the US. Distort the incentives of a market and this is what you get. When the legislation comes into full force, my prediction is that rationed care and extraordinarily long wait-lists won't be too far behind.
Excerpt:
"The Physicians Foundation asked 2,400 doctors and American Medical Association members what they thought of the new law; a full 67 percent were against it.
More important, it asked how they'd cope with the new rules (which don't fully kick in until 2014). Sixty percent said they feel compelled to "close or significantly restrict their practices to certain categories of patients." And 59 percent said the "reform" would oblige them to spend less time with the patients they do have."
Update: April 5, 2013
Fed Up With Obamacare, Doctors Increasingly Prefer Cash For Care (Forbes)
Excerpt:
"Others are considering a
departure from the current system of third-party payment. Instead, they’re
exploring direct payment, with patients paying for care on their own.
Nearly two-thirds of doctors say
that they or their colleagues will retire earlier than planned over the next
few years, according to a survey conducted by consulting firm Deloitte.
Patients should
welcome this development. Not only does the move toward direct payment have the
potential to reduce health costs — it could also yield higher-quality care.
Even before
Obamacare, direct-pay practices were growing in popularity. According to the
Center for Studying Health System Change, direct-payment practices increased
from 9.2 percent of the market in 2001 to 12.4 percent by 2008.
Nearly 7
percent of doctors say they are planning to change to some form of direct-pay
care in the next three years, according to a survey of 13,000 doctors done for
the Physicians Foundation."
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