We're constantly hearing why the market forces that bring us great deals on cars, cellular phones, and houses can never work in health care.
One leading myth is that each patient is so different, and every procedure so tailored, that doctors can't determine the cost, or tell patients the price, in advance. Hence, providing consumers with prices they can compare is totally impractical. Another holds that medicine is so sophisticated that consumers are incapable of choosing deals that combine low cost with the promise of excellent outcomes. A third is the concept that -- in contrast to every other area of the economy -- new technology inevitably makes everything more expensive.
Those oft-repeated beliefs are wrong. And the best evidence is the ultra-competitive field of cosmetic surgery and minimally invasive treatments.
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