Institutional Aspects of the Power Abuse Problem in Healthcare Under Totalitarian Rule: Case of Nazi Germany

Abstract

German Imperial Government fearing socialist rivals’ would benefit from the possible success of private non-commercial healthcare insurance prevented the rise of thereof. The governmental run system was established instead. The trend was solidified by social-democratic and other governments during the Weimar Republic period. German physicians’ experience to work for government first and foremost in the framework of non-patient interests centered system make this professional group the most adaptive to Nazi totalitarian rule. While under free society and democratic rule information asymmetry problem is mitigated more or less successfully by a number of reliable, tested solutions, under totalitarian rule, doctor-patient asymmetry not counted as a problem at all (at the best).

Keywords: public healthcare, private insurance, charity, competition, asymmetric information, doctor - patient, free society, totalitarian rule and power abuse.

JEL Classification: I13, I18, D73, D82