New Study: Medicare’s Price Controls Are Fueling America’s Growing Doctor Shortage
The Pacific Research Institute’s Center for Medical Economics and Innovation today released a new issue brief warning that continued federal underpayment of doctors is fueling a looming healthcare crisis by accelerating the nation’s physician shortage and undermining access to care. Written by PRI senior fellow in business and economics and CMEI director Dr. Wayne Winegarden, the brief (titled “It’s Time for Medicare to Stop Shortchanging Physicians”) finds that Medicare reimbursement rates are well below market ...
Read the new book from Sally Pipes “The World’s Medicine Chest”
Just released from PRI – read The World’s Medicine Chest, the latest book from PRI President, CEO and Thomas W. Smith Fellow in Health Care Policy. <The World’s Medicine Chest explores how America became the world’s leader in biopharmaceutical innovation through market capitalism. Click here to register to watch a special live webinar with Pipes on Wednesday, February 26 at 11 AM Pacific time, discussing her new book in conversation with PRI’s Dr. Wayne Winegarden. In ...
How Competition Drives Healthcare Innovation & Affordability
Making healthcare more affordable requires reforms that strengthen competitive markets, as I outlined in a recent Pacific Research Institute1 paper. Unfortunately, as we’re seeing in California and elsewhere, the trend in government is away from competition and toward fewer choices, hurting patients and increasing costs. When applied to other industries, promoting more competition is uncontroversial. It is widely accepted that economic competition fosters innovation, which drives quality higher and costs lower. Read the entire op-ed ...
Trending Topics
Single Payer
Medical Debt
Drug Prices
Studies
Podcasts
Sally Pipes – On the Health Care Debate in Washington
December 1, 2025
Sally Pipes – The World’s Medicine Chest
March 3, 2025
Wayne Winegarden – The Impact of Covid-19 Restrictions
October 2, 2023
Bill Smith – Rationing Medicine
May 23, 2023
Blogs
Learn How Drug Price Controls Hurt Patients
Big Pharma Is Not Gouging Americans nor Driving Up Healthcare Costs
Wayne Winegarden
October 8, 2025
Read part 3 of a series on drug pricing
Regulations, Not Anticompetitive Actions, Are Obstructing Drug Competition
Wayne Winegarden
July 30, 2025
Commentary
Trade Policy Is The Right Way To Fight Foreign Freeloading
Sally C. Pipes
December 8, 2025
‘Soak the Rich’ Won’t Rescue Calif. Healthcare
Sally C. Pipes
December 2, 2025
Competition, not price controls, just slashed GLP-1 prices
Sally C. Pipes
December 1, 2025
From Obamacare To Credit Cards, Price Controls Don’t Work
Wayne H Winegarden
November 25, 2025











