When Health Care Becomes “Disease Care”: How Over-Treatment Took Hold Most patients assume medical decisions are driven solely by what’s best for their health. In reality, the modern health-care system is shaped by powerful structural incentives that can quietly push care toward over-testing and over-treatment. A growing body of research suggests this problem is not marginal—it’s systemic. What Physicians Themselves Are Saying A study published in Archives of Internal Medicine surveyed 627 members of the American Medical Association and revealed striking admissions: 75% acknowledged that fear of malpractice lawsuits leads them to over-treat patients 62% agreed that diagnostic testing would be reduced if it did not generate revenue These findings highlight a reality many patients never see:medical decision-making is often shaped by legal and financial pressure, not just clinical need. Why Over-Testing Is So Common Physicians are typically reimbursed…