1. intro

Question 1

Policy

Answer 1

Describes actions taken by governments—national, state, and local—to advance some reform or action plan - in health it would be the public’s health. It covers how to organize, finance, and properly deliver health care services.

Question 2

What’s the shift of the health insurance?

Answer 2

Shifted from a manufacturing economy based on highly paid full-time jobs with good fringe benefits, toward a service economy with lower paying jobs that are often part time and have poor or no benefits (3/4 of uninsured adults are employed…this is a middle-class issue)

Question 3

US health care system v. the world?

Answer 3

Least universal, most costly (in the industrialized world)

Question 4

What’s medical loss ratio?

Answer 4

Percentage of health insurance premium that the insurance pays out for actual care (if you?re a pt, you want as much of the money you?re paying to go to actual care, and insurance wants money to stay there)

Question 5

What is politics?

Answer 5

Who gets what, when, and how

Question 6

How much is total expenses?

Answer 6

E = U * P (Total expenses = total units of service * price paid per unit)

Question 7

How are we trying to control total expenses?

Answer 7

U and P are continually rising. We’re trying to control individual, but not both at the same time…not really working out cuz providers will always figure out ways to go around

Question 8

What is a unit service?

Answer 8

Varies. Depending on situation. (1 aspirin? 1 hospital stay?)

Question 9

Explain how policies are made, realistically.

Answer 9

You have a bunch of problems floating around, and a bunch of participants, and solutions, and with some luck they line up to form opportunities.

Question 10

Distributive v. Regulator v. redistributive Policies?

Answer 10

1) Give a whole bunch, like to get stuff without thinking we’re losing something 2) EG Employee Safety, can be contentious 3) Take from one group and give to another ? quite controversial

Question 11

4 generic policy fight issues?

Answer 11

1) Is it a government problem 2) Equity/fairness 3) Who pays 4) How complicated (can it be done)?

Question 12

Tools available to affect health policy?

Answer 12

1) Behavioral incentives (AKA TAXES), Regulation, Direct expense/subsidy, and Direct provision.

Question 13

4 examples of behavioral incentives, aka taxation?

Answer 13

Tax subsidy for private insurance, taxes on products, MCARE tax on wages, tax exempt financing

Question 14

2 ways that the government directly provides money for?

Answer 14

Veterans Administration, Indian Health Service