The managed care industry says it can't contain costs if its hands are tied. It's important to separate personal peeves from national policy. A lot of the backlash against managed care reflects inconvenience and irritation, not medical failure. A large number of Washington conservatives need to spend a lot more time with working people across America and a lot less time with lobbyists and politicos. Physicians now work for managed care plans and other organizations that control the purse strings.
Patients are now consumers.
And while most doctors honor a code of professional ethics that puts patient welfare above all else, caveat emptor is still the best watchword. They are expected to be active participants in every aspect of their care from picking a health plan to deciding on a particular treatment. Since then, Americans have been herded into managed care anyway, mostly by employers who need to get their health bills down. Some regulation of the cost-cutting industry seems to us to be in the public interest. Patients need a minimal level of protection.