People don’t realize how bad it is out there. In some countries, doctors are taking public buses to work, skipping lunch to see 50 patients before noon, and retiring with the same savings as a schoolteacher. Meanwhile, patients complain that a 15-minute consultation in the U.S. costs $300. You’re not paying for the time — you’re paying for the privilege of certainty, of safety, of knowing your doctor passed through the most rigorous, exclusive system in the world.

And who built that system? The AMA.

They’ve helped ensure that American medical training remains second to none. Not just in quality, but in difficulty. The years of unpaid labor, the crushing debt, the endless exams — it’s not a flaw, it’s a filter. Without those standards, the profession would lose its weight, its dignity. If becoming a doctor were simply a matter of competence and compassion, we’d all be wearing name tags and making $60,000 a year.

But thanks to the AMA, we’ve maintained the sanctity of the white coat. We’ve ensured that when a patient walks into an American clinic, they know they’re not seeing someone who just slipped through the cracks. They’re seeing someone who’s been tested, refined, and yes — financially punished enough to demand respect.

Let’s not pretend this work is trivial, either. Just last week I diagnosed a UTI, prescribed a $4 antibiotic, and quite literally saved someone’s life — that’s a bargain at $500. If I’d been compensated based on the value of that outcome, I’d be driving home in a McLaren, not a Lexus.

And let’s be clear: this system doesn’t just benefit doctors. Everyone in medicine — from PAs to NPs to specialists — benefits from the professional ecosystem the AMA has helped shape. We’re not just providers. We’re institutions.

So yes, I’ll keep paying my AMA royalties. I’m paying to be part of something that still means something. I’m paying for the architecture that keeps American medicine elite, untouchable, and worth every penny.

And if someone wants to pay $100 for a doctor visit? There are countries for that. You just might have to bring your own stethoscope.

Of course you love the AMA. They artificially keep supply of doctors low so you can justify the exorbitant costs for a 15 minute consultation. It's no surprise that the state of tech in US Healthcare is also so poor. When you're so busy sitting on your high horse about your education, you dgaf about the actual experience for the patient.

You say the AMA keeps folks from seeing someone who just 'slipped through the cracks' but completely ignore the fact that many folks will complete their medical education training in the Carribbean and then do residency in the US. The worst part, post-residency, it's almost impossible to know where a physician went to medical school because they obfuscate and deflect to where they did their residency.

Also the arrogance surrounding foreign medical professionals in this comment is astounding. Most doctors around the world want to focus on helping their patient actually heal. American doctors just treat symptoms.