Just an observation: Anyone in private practice is by definition a capitalist.
Now the problem with those terms (socialist, capitalist, etc.) is that they stem from a different era and do not necessarily apply cleanly to the economies and social strata of the 21st century. That being said, there are many similarities as well.
Even Adam Smith, the "father of capitalism" laid out 5 areas for government involvement in his book THE WEALTH OF NATIONS. While I don't remember all 5 off the top of my head (my history degree is from 22 years ago), I do recall these areas were chosen since commercial interests would conflict too much with societal interests and therefore not enrich society as a whole (the example I do recall is education, where teaching trades would take precedence over the arts and humanities, areas that Adam Smith valued).
Unfortunately, I do not believe altruism is a strong enough motivator for medical and pharmaceutical advancement. I do believe the profit motive has given us many great innovations. It also has given us waste and duplication (do we really need 5 proton pump inhibitors?). We somehow need to figure out how to regulate these companies while still granting them great rewards for great innovations and minimizing government control. Not an easy solution.
As for providing health care to the masses, we need to create a system in which all but the most indigent pay something for their care, yet provide a security net when expenses exceed a certain dollar amount (i.e. 5 or 10 thousand). I remember learning in medical school about a Women's clinic in the Washington DC area that initially provided free care to anyone and everyone. At some point they realized there was a misuse and overutilization of services, so they instituted a small copay (I forget the amount yet it was no more than $5). They discovered that their daily patient load reduced to a more manageable number, and, more significantly, they eliminated the types of cases that didn't need to be seen (I'm sorry I don't have any specific examples here, yet as physicians we all know what types of visits these are).
So, how do we solve this issue. I don't exactly know. I do have some ideas yet since this post is already way too long and my battery is critically low, I'm going to end now.
