It is no secret the healthcare system is fraught with inefficiencies and shortcomings. Even though Americans spend more on healthcare than residents of any other nation, our healthcare outcomes lag behind those of other developed countries in measures of care. One of the major reasons for these woes is that physician associations behave like cartels that control the healthcare system. They limit the supply of doctors to keep salaries high, and use legislation to shut out competition from other medical professions.

Health professionals often cite a need for more doctors. Last year, a study released by the Association of American Medical Colleges warned of the “looming physician shortage” and the need for more doctors. The American Medical Association, the country’s largest association of physicians, emphasizes the importance of getting more government funding for physician residencies. But before evaluating these recommendations, policymakers should recognize that doctors are a big part of the reason we’re in this mess. For decades, physicians associations have had an anti-competitive stranglehold on healthcare.