Professional licenses--should they be necessary?

On one hand, I can see the value in having licenses for professionals like doctors, lawyers, and architects. The public can benefit from some assurance that the person they hire to do a task that requires great skill has had some education and has some competence.

On the other hand, licensing requirements create artificial shortages. Health care costs are high, in part, because the AMA keeps the number of doctors artificially low. While there is no shortage of lawyers, there is a shortage of affordable lawyers. Most lawyers have ta charge high rates to pay the $150K+ in student loans they have. Most lawyers cannot afford to hire themselves.

Perhaps we should have a secondary system of unlicensed people that can perform simple tasks. For example, there can be unlicensed lawyers that handle relatively simple tasks like meeting criminal suspects in jails or filing tort cases. Unlicensed doctors can take care of minor ailments and prescribe certain medications.

In the past, doctors were doctors because they had an interest in medicine. I think the first doctor was actually a chef experimenting with certain foods which had medicinal uses. The only purpose of these certifications, licenses and degrees is to make money for those who print these pieces of paper. Look how many doctors there are who spent years in medical school, abusing prescription and illegal drugs, making errors in their diagnosis of patients ailments, fumbling during surgery. The number of crooked lawyers...construction crews who can't tell the difference between a screw and a nail. We used to live in a world--in societies--which merited accomplishment by skill and intelligence. I don't think just anyone should be able to hand out prescription medication, I do think that nutritionists and alternative health practitioners should be able to help people without worry of prosecution. Quality means everything and if someone can help another better than someone else...that's how you build your business. How many people hold certifications which have to be renewed---$200+ a year---everything is a scheme nowadays.

Sure

Sarcasm disabled while typing 2nd line.

In a word no. All trades and skills should be chosen on reputation and merit period. Licensure is a construct to protect markets and monopolize information and knowledge under the guise of protecting the public. if I want to go to w witch doctors for health care that is my business and no one elses. Free markets will weed out the charlatans as those who don't provide results will not get customers and word will get around.

In todays world some sort of a certification is necessary because in urban areas there are so many people it would be nearly impossible to know who is a professional in what, but the way it is currently done needs an overhaul.

There should be a "certificate level" that requires single test regardless of education and should be issued once for life. Then there should be something similar to current licences but without need to learn needless stuff. Also education should be much cheaper, so professionals do not have to charge extraordinary amounts just to cover the loans. Also licence renewal should not be done just by paying money but during the year the professional should be "tested" so he does not get the chance to lets just say "get out of hand".

There should be a "certificate level" that requires single test regardless of education and should be issued once for life. Then there should be something similar to current licences but without need to learn needless stuff.

A few years ago Calif passed a law that all electricians had to be licenced by a certain date.

Not a bad idea but it was how that implemented it that was totally illegal.

The democrats in the state legalature passed the law as payback to there union supporters.

All electricians had to show they had 6000 hours working in the field just to take the state test.
The union electricians could just go to there union hall and get a paper showing this from the union.(i am not even going to go into how many of These were bought from the union by electricians that had friends there and had less hours)

Non union electricians had to go to there employers and ex employers to get notarized copies of there hours.
Needless to say many of these employers were no longer in business, no longer alive, could not be found, changed business name or for a number of reasons the non union electricians could not find them.
and a few employers had gone from non union shops to union shops,
and these companies were told by the union not to give any of there ex non union people there hours.
All this made it impossible for many non union electricians to get the papers for there hours just to take the test.
Also the state would not take recognise the hours of electricians that had been electricians in the military.
Many retired navy electricians with 20+years as ships or navy sea bee electricians were told there military time as electricians did not count.

As a electrician i had over 20,000 hours over 40 years but most was jobs that i only worked for the contractor for the contract job and they lasted from 3 months to a year them i moved to the next job with a new contractor.
I also was a electrician mate in the navy for 6 years.(about 6000 hours right there)
Now that i am disabled i still work as a electrician a few time a year for friends under the table and unlicensed. not being able to get licenced was one of the reasons i did not try to keep working and went on disability.

Professional licenses should not be necessary.

BTW I am now a brain surgeon.

Please lie down on the table over there, and I will remove the tumor from your brain that makes you believe that this website has not been compromised.