The US is a free market economy, were markets providing "similar" comodities are supoposed to compete with each other, fairly, for consumers.
The ULTIMATE consumer in the "surgery market" is the patient....NOT the surgeon. So if the Anesthesiologists REALY want to block the CRNAs, THEY SHOULD TARGET THE PATIENTS DIRECLY, instead of convincing surgeons to use their services. They should do that the old-fashon way....educational TV/radio/highway flyer Ads payed for by the American Society of Anesthesiologists.
You see, if a patient demands that his anesthesia be administered by an Anesthesiologist, then the surgeon cannot do anything but comply...the patient always has the Ultimate say.
The thing is that you do not see the ASA puting on TV "info-mercials", nor are they actively competing with the CRNAs....WHY?
Well, from my humble experience with anesthesia, I noticed that the "anesthesia big dogs" actually desire and hire CRNAs!!!! Why? More Money for them!
As I stated before, the CHAIRMAN of the Anesthesiology depatement at my school (who is the CEO of the anesthesiology group that is contracted by the University hospital to provide anesthesia services there) .... He hires a butt load of CRNAs in his group.
So it seems that the "anesthesiology elders" really do not care about the threat from CRNAs. It is only the med. students and residents who are more concerned with the CRNA issue......maybe because they do not see the Millions that are going into the CEO-Anesthesiologists as a result of the capital saved from hiring CRNAs,..YET!