...The History of Healthcare Economics Stephanie Creech HCS/440 December 12, 2011 Bert Munoz The History of Healthcare Economics When healthcare first began just about anyone could practice medicine, and it stayed this way in the United States until 1806 when the first licensing laws were passed in New York (Wellness Directory of Minnesota, 2003). Since then healthcare has evolved; changes in technology, organization, and payment structures just to name a few are constant. Keeping up with them, and understanding how they affect healthcare economics can be challenging to say the least. Although, there are many factors that contributed to these changes perhaps the biggest factor was the technological advances and changes in the quality of medical care. To be able to prosper now, and plan the future one must study the past. Healthcare mangers must fully understand the history and flow of funds in healthcare economics to be effective in their positions. Although, it seems obvious it is important to remember that the driving force behind any organization including healthcare is money. Money is vital because without it the organization would have to close. “Formalized medicine in America began in the 1800’s and continued until the 1930’s. This helped to establish the medical profession through both expanded duties and formal education” (Wasley, 2011para4). When doctors or physicians first began some would barter with their less fortunate patients to ensure payment...
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...SAT1 Task 3 Cherilyn Moser Healthcare is an ever growing concern around the world today. Populations continue to grow and people are living longer than ever. Nations have different systems for healthcare. The United States and Japan are two healthcare systems that are have different coverages for their citizens. United States: The United States has multiple opportunities for insurance coverage for people. There are many private insurance companies to insure Americans. There are also government assistant agencies such as: Medicare, Medicaid and Children Health Insurance Program (CHIP) (Commonwealth Fund, 2013). Persons must apply and qualify for any government assisted programs for healthcare. Medicaid: is offered to those who qualify with low income. (Families, individuals, and children) Medicare: is offered to those over the age of 65 years (retired) CHIP: is offered for children of modest level income families that do not qualify for Medicaid. Medications are covered by these groups with potential out-of-pocket expenses. Co-pays for medications are required. The type of medication may also be a factor. Some medications may not be covered by Medicaid, Medicare or CHIPS. There are times when a generic brand or alternate medication is encouraged to avoid a costly out-of-pocket expense to the patient. Social workers and physicians work together to find the most economical alternative to a medication. Specialists and/or physician referrals depends on the...
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...and in addition global spending and price estimations. The examination uncovers that Americans, especially youngsters are more probably in utilizing the physician endorsed drugs than the inhabitants of Australia, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. However, they likewise encounter more money related obstructions in getting to pharmaceuticals and spend more out-of-pocket for remedies. In the U.S., there are too bigger pay-related disparities in pharmaceutical usage. In spite of the boundaries and variations, spending per individual in the U.S. is far higher; likely the after effect of paying higher costs for comparable solutions and utilizing a more costly blend of medications. The writers say that esteem based advantage plans, reference valuing, and aggregate buying could diminish budgetary hindrances and minimize pharmaceutical spending (Morgan & Kennedy, 2010)....
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...model of healthcare does US and your chosen country have? America’s healthcare model is so disorganized that we have a little bit of Beveridge, Bismarck, National Health Insurance, and Out of Pocket models. The working class is considered to be generally in the Beveridge model. Americans who receive Medicare or Medicaid are considered to be on the National insurance model. Americans with no health insurance are on the Out of Pocket model, (Reid, 2008). Germany has the Bismarck model. This model is to ensure that all people have comprehensive coverage. Germany has what they call a sickness fund that both the employer and the employee fund through withholding. Features are quality care, low cost, claims paid without question, fixed prices, private healthcare providers, and strict governance of insurance sold on a nonprofit basis. Physicians acquire a costless education, have essentially no departmental obligations, and are hardly ever brought into litigation, (Reid, 2008). 1b. In four sentences total describe the Beveridge, Bismarck, National Insurance, and Out of Pocket models. Beveridge model is not based on whether or not a person can pay but based on medical necessity. (The Beveridge Model, 2010) Bismarck model has a sickness fund which is paid by both employer and employee through withholdings, (Kevin M.D.com, 2011). National Insurance consists of Medicare and Medicaid put in place by the government, (The National Health Insurance Model, 2011). Out of Pocket...
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...What Do Americans Want Out of Healthcare? Team 2: Michael Drescher, Tim Geiger, Heather O’Dell, Carla Raynor Part A: Consumer Preferences and Desires Overview We began with online research, surveying a group of healthcare consumers, in an effort to better understand what Americans want out of their healthcare system. Our aims were to determine what these consumer’s valued, their product and service preferences, consumption patterns, and their capacity and willingness to purchase healthcare. To facilitate this process we used Survey Monkey. Demographics of respondents We garnered responses from 80 individuals with the following characteristics: * * 65% of respondents are age 30 – 49 * Nearly all respondents are married and work full-time * Half of respondents combined annual household income in 2014 of $150,000 or more; 32% have incomes between $75,000 - $150,000 * 3 of 4 respondents were female - consistent with fact that women make most healthcare purchasing decisions for their families * 36.25% of respondents have a graduate degree; 26.25% have a bachelor degree & 26.25% attended some college but do not have a degree * 70% pay for healthcare via employer-sponsored insurance; 17% have individual/family plans * 66% share healthcare purchasing decisions with others; 1 in 3 is the sole decision maker Summary of Findings Consumption of heathcare services: Two thirds of respondents receive only an annual exam...
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...Health Utilization and Finance Melissa Dorn Organization Systems and Quality Leadership Western Governors University The United States and the United Kingdom have a lot of systems that are operated the same, such as their legislature and government operations, but the one difference is how they offer healthcare. The US healthcare system is an almost fully private system and the UK healthcare system is socialized. One may ask well what does this mean exactly. And the answer is that in the UK everyone has access to healthcare no matter how poor or rich they may be. The insurance is paid through taxation. In the US, the insurance is mostly private, which means that a person will have to pay for insurance premiums out of their pocket. The quality of the insurance will depend on the type of plan that a person is paying for and there could be high out of pocket expenses. In the US healthcare isn’t guaranteed by the government like in other industrialized nations. In the US the government doesn’t control most insurance systems or how they operate. People in the US who do have healthcare coverage are covered either by private insurance or a public health care system. A lot of unemployed individuals don’t have any coverage at all. Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program and the Veteran Affairs program are considered public health care systems. For some of these government programs, individuals may still be responsible for a premium depending on income. The...
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...issues that is widely discussed and debated concerning the United States economy is healthcare system. Unlike in the majority of developed and developing countries, the healthcare system in the United States is not public, meaning that the state does not provide free or cheap healthcare services. In Canada or Great Britain, for example, the government funds healthcare providers through taxes, and such a system is called social. The United States, on the other hand, being a profoundly capitalistic country, opted for another route and passed the burden of healthcare spending on private consumers as well as other institutions such as employers, insurers, etc. Everything would have been fine unless statistics showed dramatic increases in healthcare spending over the years. American healthcare system is the most expensive one in the world; in 2004 America spent about 16% of nation’s Gross Domestic Product on healthcare services, which is approximately $1.9 trillion (Economist, 2006). Furthermore, annual spending continues to grow 10 to 15 percent every year (Davis et al., 2003), which is faster than the national inflation growth rate. Thus, we can see that healthcare spending in the United States requires immediate analysis and new policy solutions, otherwise it would become an uncontrollable fund-consuming machine. American economists are now trying to understand the nature of the growing healthcare costs, and to analyze its impact on the overall nation’s economy. Health and Human Services...
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...The costs of healthcare in the United States has skyrocketed over the last several years. According to CMS, as cited on unitedhealthgroup.com (2015) the GDP has grown from historically 11% to an estimated 19.6% by 2021. This trend indicates that the cost of healthcare in the US is rapidly excessing the income level of those who pay for it. Over 60% of employed individuals that receive healthcare benefits from their employers have experienced such a rise in premiums and out-of-pockets expenses that it has more than doubled between 1999 and 2008 (ssab.gov, 2009). While there are multiple components of the healthcare system and multiple populations that the healthcare system needs to cover one of the largest single population that will be a tremendous consumer of healthcare is the elderly population. As we have discussed many times throughout this class, the elderly population is growing by huge numbers primarily due to the baby boomer generation hitting retirement age. According to the American Hospital Association (2007) the aging Baby Boomers will cause the over 65 population to almost triple by year 2030. Along with this immense population group they will bring with them demands and challenges for the healthcare system as 6 out of 10 will be living with multiple chronic illness. With Medicare being the primary source of payment of healthcare in the over-65 age group it has been noted that the median annual out-of-pocket cost to Medicare beneficiaries will reach approximately...
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...The purpose of a healthcare system is to preserve the life and well-being of the citizens of a country. In this paper I will be both comparing and contrasting the healthcare systems of the United States and Germany. I will be looking at cost to consumers, coverage of health care and personal choices about your own health care. The average cost of insurance for an American family is approximately $17,000 per year with health care insurance companies raising rates almost every year. Insurance offered through employers is usually at least partially paid by the employer. Health insurance is mandatory for all families and people face large tax fees if they are uninsured. Germany also has mandatory health insurance for all of it’s citizens. German...
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...economy is healthcare system. The majority countries the healthcare system in the United States is not public, meaning that the state does not provide free or despicable healthcare services. However other countries Canada and Great Britain, for example, the government funds healthcare providers through taxes. The United States being a profoundly capitalistic country for another route and passed the burden of healthcare spending on private consumers as well as other institutions such as employers, insurers, etc. Everything would have been fine unless statistics showed dramatic increases in healthcare spending over the years. American healthcare system is the most expensive one in the world; in 2004 America spent about 16% of nation’s Gross Domestic Product on healthcare services, which is approximately $1.9 trillion (Economist, 2006). Furthermore, annual spending continues to grow 10 to 15 percent every year (Davis et al., 2003), which is faster than the national inflation growth rate. However, healthcare spending in the United States requires abrupt analysis and new policy solutions; or else it would become an uncontrollable fund-consuming machine. American economists are now trying to understand the nature of the growing healthcare costs, and to analyze its impact on the overall nation’s economy. Health and Human Services Department identified the major trends that lead to the rapid growth of healthcare spending. These include (but are not limited to) “changes in healthcare utilization...
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...Harsh Realities of Healthcare Adam Thompson Bryant & Stratton Research and Writing II - ENGL 250 – 551 Dr. Sharma July 26, 2014 Insurance is a two-way legal agreement between the insurer and the customer. The customer, which may be an individual, business, or other entity, agrees to pay the premiums as required, in exchange for monetary protection from the insurer for any possible substantial loss. Customers usually obtain insurance, not to cover the trivial incidents of life or business, but to cover the potential significant losses which could be a financial hardship for them. The premiums of all customers of the insurance company are pooled together. The insurance applies statistical analysis to determine the chance that a particular event might occur to one of their customers. From this analysis they can determine the premiums which must be collected and the claims. Insurance is a very important part of modern life and business. Three health insurance companies: Healthspan, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and Apex. Breaking down plans and talking about what they cover, how much they cost and where they are accepted and attempt to answer the age old question “Is people’s healthcare better depending on how much one pays?” All these packages are based on someone who makes $25,000 per year and only looking to cover just them. The prices also change depending on when they want their insurance to start and if they have to prorate for the previous month and also if the...
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...health care costs. Finally, the assignment will show how a small business owner whose group insurance policy costs continue to rise may make decisions to halt increases to his insurance cost. I would not get the laser surgery at the cost of $500.00 per eye. The procedure is considered to be cosmetic and not a medical need or emergency. This would make the surgery elective and a choice. Since my nearsightedness does not interfere with my job performance and also is not a detrimental factor in getting a job, I would not see a need to spend that amount of money. Even though odds of the surgery correcting my vision are very high, due to the surgery not being covered by my health insurance, I could not afford the out of pocket expense for the procedure. Such a response also reflects the reality that the moral hazard is low or non-existent. This is due to the fact that the procedures would not protect me from a disease or debilitating health condition (Folland, Goodman & Stano, 2010, pp. 155-156). If my health insurance covers 80% of the cost of surgery, I would have the surgery. This would mean that I would only have to pay a total of $200.00, as my out of pocket costs would be $100.00 per eye. The insurance company would pay $800.00. Coinsurance allows for the insurance company and the person insured to share the costs of the medical procedure. The insurance company paying the subsidy of 80% of the costs does not expose the person insured to the actual cost of the surgery...
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...The rising cost of healthcare in today’s economy is in desperate need of reform. The cost of healthcare has affected the number of people able to receive medical care. Individuals are suffering more than ever because of the inability to receive medical attention when it’s needed. First, the rising cost of healthcare is going to continue to rise year after year. This is making it harder and harder on working class to receive medical care. It is even harder on the unemployed. As President Obama is urging congress for a stimulus this year, many feel that medicine is the best stimulus. America needs a healthy economy. After all, healthcare isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. Today the healthcare deduction is getting bigger and bigger. Despite a huge amount of complaints about “over insurance”, the amount people pay for healthcare out of pocket has risen tremendously. The Commonwealth Fund recently completed two massive surveys showing that the proportion of adults younger than 65 with health insurance who spent more than 10 percent of their income on health care out of pocket (5 percent for low-income adults) skyrocketed fro 13.8 million in 2003 to 21.8 million in 2007. (Jacob S. Hacker, Co-Director of the Center for Health, Economic and Family Security at UC Berkeley). This is in response to the hike in deductibles and co-payments in health plans. There are 40 percent of the working-age populations in an immediate economic bind because of medical costs. Second, because of the rising...
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...that access (or lack thereof) impacts your community economically. The use of modern technology in the healthcare field is seen to have grown rapidly over the years. Many hospitals and health care providers are embracing new innovations of technology in healthcare. Technologies in healthcare have provided clinical benefits such as prolonged life and improvement in the quality of life. There is an increased access to health care technology in my community today than it had been in previous years and this also has led to increased health care utilization, making it difficult for people to make choices on healthcare or other priorities such as subsistence like food, shelter and others to choose from. Technology is expanding every day and healthcare systems are utilizing new services which will make health care cost continue to be on the rise. An example of technology used in the healthcare field today is the Magnetic Resonance Imaging machine also called the MRI. This is a very important medical procedure that physicians have adopted and allows them get in depths look at what is happening in a patient’s body. This helps healthcare providers find the source of an illness or pain and also helps in determining a plan of treatment for such patient. The average cost of the MRI procedure is $3,500 depending upon which MRI procedure is performed. With the increasing cost of technology, people who can afford this are going for it because of its benefits and they naturally demand...
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...Health Care Spending HCS 440 Economics: The Financing of Healthcare Class Group: BSEW1GQMZ5 University of Phoenix Online Instructor: Geoffrey J. Suszkowski, Ph.D., LFHIMSS 05/11/2015 Health Care Spending “In 2013 U.S. health care spending increased 3.6 percent to reach $2.9 trillion, or $9,255 per person, the fifth consecutive year of slow growth in the range of 3.6 percent and 4.1 percent. The share of the economy devoted to health spending has remained at 17.4 percent since 2009 as health spending and the Gross Domestic Product increased at similar rates for 2010 - 2013”("National Health Expenditures 2013 Highlights," 2013). The cost of health care spending greatly affects the way that individuals budget their spending. It is important the economy can adjust accordingly to individuals about whether health care spending is too much or not enough. Current Level of National Healthcare Spending The topic of healthcare spending in the United States is a controversial one, and most often, the populations' opinions doesn't always agree with those of policymakers. Getting health care spending under control is vital to the economic health of the government and the people of the United States. What makes healthcare expenditures so disgraceful is the large amount of money the government spends on healthcare each year versus the number of people without health care. The amount of money the U.S. government spends on health care each year doubles that...
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