Bottom line is this is one of the most capitalist transactions out there - no price controls, regulatory body, recommended rates, collective bargaining etc. The only distortions that can allow excesses to creep in are an eye on the law and fear of exposure for some.
So rates do stabilize over time based on what the local market will tolerate - a function of supply, demand etc
I switch off at the moralizing / ethics arguments (“how do you expect providers to survive under these conditions…”) as much as I do when I hear clients speak of providers collectively as being required to do whatever they want, whenever, because they’re paying.
