The second largest doctors’ group in the country, American College of Physicians (ACP) endorsed Medicare For All challenging other large doctor’s coalitions. This shift signifies changing ideals within the healthcare industry about a government plan.
Second only to the American Medical Association (AMA), the ACP published a position paper arguing the benefits of a single-payer system. Support for single-payer contests the AMA’s stance, publicly affirming that doctors do not have a unified political view on this issue. Senior vice president of governmental affairs and public policy for the ACP, Bob Doherty claims that Medicare For All could solve a lot of frustrations for doctors. He noted the complexities of paperwork with multiple insurers and that “they see the lack of insurance as standing in the way of their patients getting affordable care.”
Workers in the health care industry have concerns about a government run system because of potentially drastic pay cuts. Doherty addressed these concerns stating that most doctors “might be willing to receive somewhat smaller payments under Medicare for All if they made up for it if with savings on administrative costs from a simpler system.” Discussion about details of pay, new legislation, and other emerging healthcare issues have been widely discussed within the industry.
Sources: The Hill 2/11/20; The Nation 2/6/20
