Ed Sealover of the Denver Business Journal reports:

Even more Coloradans are expected to visit the state’s overcrowded emergency rooms after the full implementation of federal health care reform in 2014 because of a lack of primary care doctors, according to a study released Monday by the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Read the whole article: Lack of primary-care doctors will make Colorado ERs busier under health reform.

Why is there a shortage of primary care doctors?John Goodman explains in the Wall Street Journal:

This year, Medicare is paying $111.36 for the PCP visit. The ophthalmologist, meanwhile, is raking in $836.36 (including the patient copayment). Medicare is paying 7.5 times more for cataract removal than for a primary care visit. If we measure according to the time spent to earn the fee, Medicare is paying the ophthalmologist 15 times what it pays the PCP.

Is there any wonder why the shortage of primary care is reaching crisis proportions in many parts of the country, while cataract removal is available at the drop of a hat?

A more sensible approach is to quit asking for the impossible. Instead, let’s begin the process of allowing medical fees to be determined the way prices are determined everywhere else in our economy—in the marketplace. Here are three ways to start: …

Read more: John C. Goodman: Three Simple Ways Medicare Can Save Money.