According to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, more health providers leads to higher healthcare prices.
The purpose of Kentucky's Certificate of Need process is to prevent the proliferation of health care facilities, health services and major medical equipment which increases the cost of quality health care in the commonwealth.
It will be interesting to see how much of an increase Louisville hospital patients will suffer now that the state has has agreed to allow Jewish Hospital to add 75 beds.
As any freshman economics student quickly learns, increased supply causes lower prices.
While we are at it, could we get the CHFS to victimize Jessamine County just a little bit? We don't have a hospital at all. Frankly, when it comes to the economic theory of health care bureaucrats in Frankfort versus the real world, it looks like Kentucky could use a lot more of this proliferation stuff.
