Malpractice litigation + health insurance + Atul Gawande's Better

I've been working my way through Atul Gawande's Better, and as I'm writing this, I realize that I'm more than halfway through, which surprises me a little. I don't feel like I've read that much...sign of a good writer?

I loved his debut, Complications. My boyfriend asked the other day, so is the 2nd book really better? Ha. I'd say it's more serious. By this, I don't mean that Complications dealt with fluff, but the topics that he chose to cover in Better (litigation, health insurance, patient privacy) definitely reflect the years that has passed--and its requisite experiences, feelings, growing bitterness?, definitely growing disillusionment--since his residency, when he wrote his debut.

There are many passages of the book that has stuck with me, but the most recent one pertains to malpractice litigation:

The one defense of our malpractice system is that it has civilized the passions that arise when a doctor has done a devastating wrong. It may not be a rational system, but it does give people with the most heartbreaking injuries a means to fight...And although it does nothing for plaintiffs, people whose loved ones have suffered complications do not then riot in hospital hallways, as clans have done in some countries

When I read that, I thought, Ha, that's what happens in China. Where do I begin? The doctors who get ambushed publicly when loved ones day? The reporters who get maimed for investigating doctor misconduct? The lack of respect and satisfaction doctors in China feel? Reading that passage above made me suddenly wondering, would a better justice/legal system not only help human rights and other areas but also the health system? Just a thought.

Gawande then goes on to talk about health insurance: insurance considerations start from the moment someone calls to make an appointment. Making sure they have insurance, making sure you as the doctor falls in their insurance's network, making sure the insurance covers the visit or service, making sure the patient is aware that he/she has to bring in money for the copay, entering in the right referral number, preapproval numbers, insurance-plan numbers, diagnosis codes, procedure codes, visit codes, tax ID number, etc. etc. Reading it just makes my head spin, I don't want to think about actually doing all of that...Just like Gawande, I've heard from doctors, almost-doctors, and potential doctors alike that insurance is/was their biggest concern. And I can kind of get a feel for that. No wonder concierge practices are getting more popular. More on this later. (I'm shadowing a concierge doctor now.)