Michael Cannon on the power of the government in health care today:

Government already finances about half of Americans’ medical care, so you might say our system is already half-socialized. Yet we are much farther along the road to socialized medicine than even that would suggest.

Consider two distinguishing features of socialist economies. The first is that the government decides what individuals may produce, what they consume, and the terms of exchange.

That is largely true of America’s health care system. Government controls production and consumption by determining the number of physicians; what services medical professionals can offer and under what terms; where they can practice; who can open a hospital or purchase a new MRI; who can market a drug or medical device; and what kind of health insurance consumers may purchase.

(via Instapundit)