Please allow me to support that request. Health care is not just another topic -- it eats 18% of US GDP for mediocre outcomes on average, compared to the second most expensive country in the world, Switzerland, which spends about 12% of GDP on gold-plated, highly successful health care. It is not just the AMA -- not at all -- it is a massive system supported by much the highest spending on lobbying of any industry, leading to very significant regulatory capture. It raises the cost of employing workers, it somehow at the same time leads to a larger proportion of the population of any rich country who have no formal health insurance, exhibits roughly 2.4 times the obesity rate, 2 times the diabetes rate, and 1.7 times the asthma rate compared to the average of peer countries. The United States has the highest maternal and child mortality rates among high-income countries, driven by higher rates of preventable deaths, racial disparities, and systemic gaps in postpartum care. Plenty to choose from...
Licensing is so much more complex than most people realize! It actually affects nearly twice as many Americans than the federal minimum wage and unions *combined*! Even more confusing is that each state gets to define the occupation [what the occupation is called] and the scope of occupation [what people in that occupation do]. Some states have natural hair braiding licenses and some states require hair braiders to get barber licenses and some states have no license if all you do is braid hair. You may also need to get multiple licenses if your job overlaps multiple occupations' scopes. So your local CrossFit coach may need a personal trainer license to coach a class, a nutritionist or dietician license if they give meal/nutrition/diet advice, and a massage therapy, chiropractic, or physical therapy license if they are helping you with an injury.
nice post do doctors next, specifically the cartel-like behavior of the AMA 👀
Fortunately, there never seems to be a shortage of topics to write about each week
Please allow me to support that request. Health care is not just another topic -- it eats 18% of US GDP for mediocre outcomes on average, compared to the second most expensive country in the world, Switzerland, which spends about 12% of GDP on gold-plated, highly successful health care. It is not just the AMA -- not at all -- it is a massive system supported by much the highest spending on lobbying of any industry, leading to very significant regulatory capture. It raises the cost of employing workers, it somehow at the same time leads to a larger proportion of the population of any rich country who have no formal health insurance, exhibits roughly 2.4 times the obesity rate, 2 times the diabetes rate, and 1.7 times the asthma rate compared to the average of peer countries. The United States has the highest maternal and child mortality rates among high-income countries, driven by higher rates of preventable deaths, racial disparities, and systemic gaps in postpartum care. Plenty to choose from...
Licensing is so much more complex than most people realize! It actually affects nearly twice as many Americans than the federal minimum wage and unions *combined*! Even more confusing is that each state gets to define the occupation [what the occupation is called] and the scope of occupation [what people in that occupation do]. Some states have natural hair braiding licenses and some states require hair braiders to get barber licenses and some states have no license if all you do is braid hair. You may also need to get multiple licenses if your job overlaps multiple occupations' scopes. So your local CrossFit coach may need a personal trainer license to coach a class, a nutritionist or dietician license if they give meal/nutrition/diet advice, and a massage therapy, chiropractic, or physical therapy license if they are helping you with an injury.
Some states also just like to license more than others. Some harmless self-promotion: Check out the State Occupational Licensing Index to see who https://www.archbridgeinstitute.org/state-occupational-licensing-index/ and keep your eyes out for our 2026 edition releasing next month.
I love the work that you're putting out there!
I would go to an unlicensed surgeon.