HomeUploadUpload DirectHotlinkRandomAbouttheme toggle
Expand

Nurse Practitioners Can Make Health Care Cheaper (and Doctors Want to Stop Them)

Views:1042
@ReasonVids

"The major motivation in this opposition is kind of a turf war," says Dale Ann Dorsey, a nurse practitioner who runs her own women's health clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Arizona is one of 18 states that allows nurse practitioners to run independent primary care practices, with full prescribing privileges, and without the oversight of a licensed physician. Earlier this year, nurse practitioners in California pushed to liberalize scope-of-practice rules in the Golden State, only to be stopped dead in their tracks by the powerful California Medical Association (CMA), which poured more than $1 million into lobbying efforts in the first half of 2013, when the legislation was under consideration.

"Nurse practioners' training is very limited compared to physicians," says Paul Phinney, a California pediatrician and former CMA president. "They lack a certain kind of experience that I believe is very important to the safety of patients and the quality of medical care that they're providing."

He has a point. Physicians are required to obtain far more education and clinical experience than are nurse practitioners. But there's little to no evidence showing that, when it comes to primary care, all of that extra education makes any difference in patient health outcomes. A 2012 Health Affairs survey of the medical literature found no difference in patient health between the two groups and even found a slightly higher satisfaction rate among patients of nurse practitioners.

So if outcomes are similar, and patients are satisfied, why are states like California hesitant to let more nurses open their own practices, especially when groups like the Association of American Medical Colleges are expecting a doctor shortage timebomb to detonate in the near future due to the aging population? Reason policy analyst Adam Summers says that concern for the public good is a secondary consideration at best in this case.

"Licensing laws are almost always sold as being in the public interest," says Summers. "But in reality all they do is drive up prices and reduce competition, which reduces the incentive to provide good services to the consumer."

Watch the video above to learn more about the nurse practitioners' struggle for clinical independence. Scroll down for downloadable links, and subscribe to Reason TV's Youtube channel for daily content like this.

Approximately 5 minutes. Produced by Zach Weissmueller. Shot by Tracy Oppenheimer and Weissmueller. Graphics by William Neff.

health care (issue)
,
nurse practitioner (occupation)
,
affordable healthcare
,
affordable healthcare act
,
obamacare
,
occupational licensing
,
competition
,
health care market
,
free market (idea)
,
libertarian
,
reason magazine
,
doctors versus nurses
,
doctors vs. nurses
    Thumbnail for Officers on Trial in Killing of Kelly Thomas2:16
    Officers on Trial in Killing of Kelly Thomas
    ReasonVids
    1066 views
    Thumbnail for Why can't GreenCab give you a ride? HINT: It's not their competition2:27
    Why can't GreenCab give you a ride? HINT: It's not their competition
    IJvids
    927 views
    Thumbnail for If We Do Nothing: Milking the Dream16:54
    If We Do Nothing: Milking the Dream
    AmericanRenaissance
    937 views
    Thumbnail for Remy: Bitcoin Billionaire2:55
    Remy: Bitcoin Billionaire
    ReasonVids
    929 views
    Thumbnail for Queen of the Covid Karens gets herself kicked off the airplane.3:00
    Queen of the Covid Karens gets herself kicked off the airplane.
    AOU
    2236 views
    Thumbnail for The LAST ONE is WILD ☠️😂 | Naifh Alehydeb0:31
    The LAST ONE is WILD ☠️😂 | Naifh Alehydeb
    invidious
    122 views
    Thumbnail for Silicon Valley: A Shocking Lack of Diversity7:43
    Silicon Valley: A Shocking Lack of Diversity
    AmericanRenaissance
    1440 views
    Thumbnail for Good News, White People!9:32
    Good News, White People!
    AmericanRenaissance
    957 views
    Thumbnail for Don't use a green laser in the cold! | Brainiac759:01
    Don't use a green laser in the cold! | Brainiac75
    invidious
    549 views
    Thumbnail for Harvester's Advice1:17
    Harvester's Advice
    Queuenard
    556 views
    Thumbnail for INFLATION RED ALERT: THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR CURRENCY IS NOW GUARANTEED -- Andrew Lee | SGT Report27:04
    INFLATION RED ALERT: THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR CURRENCY IS NOW GUARANTEED -- Andrew Lee | SGT Report
    bitchute_topics
    889 views
    Thumbnail for Inside of an owl's ear0:08
    Inside of an owl's ear
    AmericanMuskrat
    419 views
    Thumbnail for Crowd -The Red Door - s1e423:34
    Crowd -The Red Door - s1e4
    ITCrowd.topic
    327 views
    Thumbnail for 24/7 Healing Scriptures For Meditation And Sleep | Joseph Prince | Gospel Partner Resource1:00
    24/7 Healing Scriptures For Meditation And Sleep | Joseph Prince | Gospel Partner Resource
    invidious
    341 views
    Thumbnail for Megyn Kelly Reacts to NJ Gov. Murphy Tempting Border Czar Tom Homan to Look Into Illegal Houseguest | Megyn Kelly1:00
    Megyn Kelly Reacts to NJ Gov. Murphy Tempting Border Czar Tom Homan to Look Into Illegal Houseguest | Megyn Kelly
    invidious
    143 views
    Thumbnail for Hoping this for my American frens1:08
    Hoping this for my American frens
    bestofupgoat
    183 views
    Thumbnail for True0:17
    True
    bestofvid8
    578 views
    Thumbnail for Stefan Molyneux is a jew0:12
    Stefan Molyneux is a jew
    bestofvoatxyz
    852 views
    Thumbnail for 🐅🪿0:23
    🐅🪿
    bestofupgoat
    83 views
    Thumbnail for Why the Feds Banned Four Loko (And is your favorite drink next?)3:26
    Why the Feds Banned Four Loko (And is your favorite drink next?)
    ReasonVids
    962 views
    Thumbnail for High School Journalism Teacher Suspended After Standing Up for Student Reporters' Free Speech Rights7:05
    High School Journalism Teacher Suspended After Standing Up for Student Reporters' Free Speech Rights
    ReasonVids
    1001 views
    Thumbnail for dogs: scampis ball6:00
    dogs: scampis ball
    drspastic
    1000 views
    Thumbnail for Opera Singer | Cake - Topic4:07
    Opera Singer | Cake - Topic
    invidious
    187 views
    Thumbnail for LIVE🔴 RCB vs CSK🏴 Dream11 Prediction | Live 🔴| RCB vs CSK LIVE Dream11| #RCBvsCSKlive | CRICKOMETER2:28:14
    LIVE🔴 RCB vs CSK🏴 Dream11 Prediction | Live 🔴| RCB vs CSK LIVE Dream11| #RCBvsCSKlive | CRICKOMETER
    invidious
    127 views
    Thumbnail for The McDonald's AI Security Breach | Mental Outlaw9:10
    The McDonald's AI Security Breach | Mental Outlaw
    invidious
    54 views

points

Permalink
Reply
health care (issue)
,
nurse practitioner (occupation)
,
affordable healthcare
,
affordable healthcare act
,
obamacare
,
occupational licensing
,
competition
,
health care market
,
free market (idea)
,
libertarian
,
reason magazine
,
doctors versus nurses
,
doctors vs. nurses
TOS  •  Add Keywords  •  Donate  •   Analytics  •   DMCA  •   Puzzle