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Economic implications of health insurance
Economic theory in healthcare
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The value of healthcare professionals and decision makers understanding the discipline of health economics.
Healthcare professionals and decision makers understanding the discipline of health economics is very important. Health economics can be classified as a branch of health economics as it relates to the healthcare system by efficiency and effectiveness (Teitelbaum & Wilensky, 2007). Understanding the discipline of health economics help healthcare professionals and decision makers in dealing with the provision, delivery and use of healthcare goods and services. The value of healthcare professionals on evaluating cost effectiveness in the delivery of health care, evaluating the measure of the quality of services and the economic impact of
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The primary potential benefits of learning about health economics related to government involvement in healthcare economics, financing, and delivery are government intervention in the market to control price, quantity, and quality of services. According to Hicks L. L. (2014), the regulation of the market by the government is to control price, quality, and quantity by direct action such as instituting price controls, establishing professional licensure requirements, or accessing and regulating the quantity of services and enforcing competitive behavior in the market. The government has the authority to intervene in the market place and influence any aspect of health care delivery. For instance, the government can control the number of health care providers, services they provide and/or even prices providers set for services. Government involvement in health economics, financing and delivery also have a strong influence on innovations and new health technologies. The introduction and use of new medical technologies and equipment for treatment are also control by government. If not controlled by the government it could lead to high usage thereby increasing healthcare …show more content…
Government involvement in healthcare economics, financing and delivery can also improve economic efficiency which allows consumers to make their own choices/decisions about the services they acquire. Consumers/patients are highly satisfied if they are given the opportunity to select the services they need, rather than having goods assigned to them by someone else. Consumers will prefer selecting their taste of a goods or services out of a set of alternatives. For instance, having the alternative of selecting your own health insurance policy based on your medical examination needs or demand rather than it being assigned to you. The latter situation would satisfy more people because they know it was their
Being a Canadian citizen, it is hard for me to think of life without any health insurance. I have had public health insurance all my life growing up and have been free to go to any hospital at any time and get some form of health care. Residing in the United States off and for the last 7 years I have experienced health care from both sides. I feel that private health care has huge advantages over public health care. In the following essay I will explain in three points why I feel strongly about private health care as opposed to public. What is better is always subjective, and I will not try to argue the point of health for all, but instead for the individual who is seeking the best health care possible, and is willing to put the resources into obtaining that. I will be addressing efficiency and quality, not inclusion of everyone (free health care), I will be addressing the root of this and not just that one argument, which would detract from my focus. I will not be getting into the political debate of socialism vs. capitalism, as that is a separate argument in itself, and this country is currently running under capitalism. Again coming from living in both a socialist and then a capitalist society, I feel I can do so in an unbiased manner.
Hicks, L. (2012). The Economics of Health and Medical Care (6th Ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
Buchbinder, S. B., & Shanks, N. A. (2007). Managing Costs and Revenues. In (Ed.), Introduction to Healthcare Management ( ed., p. pp. -). : . []. doi: Retrieved from
Universal health care refers to any system of health care managed by the government. The health care system may cover different programs including government run hospitals and health organizations and programs targeted at providing health care. Many developed countries such as Canada and United Kingdom have embraced universal health care with the United States being the only exception. The present U.S health care system has often been considered inefficient in terms of cost control as millions of Americans remain uncovered. This has made it the subject of a heated debate characterized by people who argue that the country requires a kind of socialized system that will permit increased government participation. Others have tended to support privatized health care, or a combined model of private and universal health care that will permit private companies to offer health care for a specific fee. Universal healthcare has numerous advantages that remain hidden from society. First, the federal government can apply economies of scale in managing health facilities which would reduce health care expenses. Second, all unnecessary expenses would be eliminated by requiring all states to bring together all the insurance companies into a single entity whose mandate would be to provide health insurance to all people. Lastly, increased government participation will guarantee quality care, improve access to medical services and address critical problems relating to market failure.
The United States health care system is one of the most expensive systems in the world yet it is known as being unorganized and chaotic in comparison to other countries (Barton, 2010). This factor is attributed to numerous characteristics that define what the U.S. system is comprised of. Two of the major indications are imperfect market conditions and the demand for new technology (Barton, 2010). The health care system has been described as a free market in
It is essential for the United States government to provide its entire citizen with a free health care. This system ensures that everyone has an access to medical services regardless to his or her social status. It is an important way of preserving life as free health care plan ensures free treatment to the entire citizen. In addition, it can play a big role of ensuring that there is an improved access to health services. Ensuring that all American citizens have an access to the right health care will in turn decrease health care costs. It can also help to stop medical bankruptcies in the entire nation. Lastly, it is one way of reducing poverty as it will lower the debt of the US which would then increase employment.
From the individual perspective mandating the health insurance will firstly make the individual be independent rather than relying over the society and whatever cost of medical treatment due to catastrophic events the insured faces in his future will be covered by the Health Insurance and he has to bear very less cost of the medical treatment. And also those services will be there whether the person gets sick or not.
Porter, M.E., (2010). What is the value in healthcare? New England Journal of Medicine. 363:2477-2481
Pardis, M., Wood, J., & Cramer, M. (2009, September-October). A policy analysis of health care . Nursing economic$ the journal for health care leaders, 27(no 5 2009 r). Retrieved from http://www.nursingeconomics.net/cgi-bin/WebObjects?NECJournal.woa/wa/viewSection?s_id=1073744460.
6. The special characteristics of the U.S. health care market are Ethical and equity considerations, asymmetric information, spillover benefits, and third-party payments: insurance. Each one of these characteristics affects health care in some way. For example, ethical and equity considerations affect health care in the way that society does not consider unjust for people to be denied to health care access. Society believes that it is the same thing as not owning a car or a computer. Asymmetric information also gives health care a boost in prices. People who buy health care have no information on what procedures and diagnostics are involved, but on the other hand sellers do. This creates an unusual situation in which the doctor (seller) tells the patient(buyer) what services he or she should consume. It seems like the patient has to buy what the doctor tells him. The topic of spillover benefits also cause a rise in prices. This meaning that immunizations for diseases benefit not only the person who buys it but the whole community as well. It reduces the risk of the whole population getting infected. And the last characteristic is third-party insurance. Which involves all the insurance money people have to pay. This causes a distortion which results in excess consumption of health care services.
According to Harry A. Sultz and Kristina M. Young, the authors of our textbook Health Care USA, medical care in the United States is a $2.5 Trillion industry (xvii). This industry is so large that “the U.S. health care system is the world’s eighth
According to Roy, 2013 the issues of providing the affordable care act will unite both the supporters and offenders of the public policy, but in this current situation where the input costs are rising, it will become impossible for government in managing the public policy related to affordable health care. In order to provide affordable health care, majority of the US government has tried out different policies time to time, but unable to get success in realizing the actual policy goals. By providing the affordable health care to majority of the people who requires more amount as controlling the input cost is not possible (AAMC, 2013). Lack of doctors is one of the primary issue in providing high quality health care to the citizens especially those who are financially poor. The Supreme Court of the country passed an Act related to Health insurance as all should have Health Insurance to all the country people by the year 2014, but the at the same time government is concerned about constitutionality of these act (NYTimes, 2013).
towards the quality and cost of health care in the United States in the general public. In
...onship with the healthcare provider. If a person understands what their rights and responsibilities mean and that they have not just signed a paper required by law; they can better understand what is needed to get the best out of the healthcare system. The person will be able to understand that they do have options and they can make their own choices. Also, one provider is not the final word when they are receiving services.
The cost of US health care has been steadily increasing for many years causing many Americans to face difficult choices between health care and other priorities in their lives. Health economists are bringing to light the tradeoffs which must be considered in every healthcare decision (Getzen, 2013, p. 427). Therefore, efforts must be made to incite change which constrains the cost of health care without creating adverse health consequences. As the medical field becomes more business oriented, there will be more of a shift in focus toward the costs and benefits, which will make medicine more like the rest of the economy (Getzen, 2013, p. 439).