Week 2 - Policymaking Flashcards
Who makes policy?
Private actors (health foundations), government (federal, state. and local), and authoritative decision makers
What are the 2 public policy problems?
Beyond individual concerns and determine if a “decision” represents a “policy”
What are the 2 structuring policy options?
- Mandatory/voluntary
- Take action/refrain from acting
What is the federal policymaking structure?
- Legislative branch: House and Senate
- Executive branch: White House and administrative agencies
- Judicial branch
What is Congress? What are the 2 parts of Congress? Who makes up those parts?
Congress is lawmaking body of federal government
Congress consists of Senate and House
Senate: statewide; two senators from each state
House: by district; proportional to population, at least one representative per state
What is the legislative branch of Congress? Give a few examples of health committees.
Workhorse of Congress
Examples of health committees:
Senate Finance, subcommittee on health care
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
House Ways and Means
House Appropriations, subcommittee on Labor,
Health and Human Services
Education
Who are the constituents of the legislative branch?
Voters in State or District
Voters in nation if have leadership role or national aspirations
Political Party
President
Who makes up the executive branch? How many cabinet departments are there and what are their jobs?
White House: President and executive offices assist and advise president
15 Cabinet Departments: interpret and Implement laws passed by Congress
What are some of the presidential powers/duties?
Chief of State: symbol of the country and its citizens
Chief Executive Officer: manages cabinet and executive branch
Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces: top
ranking military official in the country
Other powers: sets the Agenda, Budget Proposals, Persuasion, Sign or Veto Bills, Executive Orders
What are the duties of the administrative agencies of the executive branch? Who are their constituents?
Duties/Powers: implement statutes through
rulemaking
Constituents:
President
Congress
Individuals and entities regulated by agency
Who are the president’s constituents?
Nation (All Voters)
Public who voted for president
Political Party
Other Nations
International Organizations
Who are the 3 key agencies in health bureaucracy?
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Department of Defense (DOD); Military Health
What are the 11 agencies of the HHS?
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Food and Drug Administration
National Institutes of Health
Administration for Children and Families
Administration on Aging
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Health Resources and Services Administration
Indian Health Service
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
What does the VA do? What is TRICARE (DOD) and what does it do?
VA: provides comprehensive care to veterans
DOD:
TRICARE originally stood for “TRI-service CARE,” indicating its purpose to provide healthcare for members of the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Over time, it
expanded to cover other service members, veterans, and
their families, while keeping the same name.
TRICARE provides health insurance to current and
retired military personnel and their families
Why is state-level policymaking important? Give 2 example of state and local health bureaucracy.
State-level policymaking is important because:
Key decisions are made on state level.
The Constitution gives states primary responsibility
for protecting the public’s health.
Variation among states in how policymaking process is structured
State and local health bureaucracy: state-level agencies (e.g., Medicaid, Public Health) and local public health agencies
What are interest groups? Do they make policy? Give examples. What is a Think Tank?
Interest Group: a variety of
organizations that focus on issues and have the goal of influencing and educating policymakers and the general public
Examples: Trade Associations,
Think Tanks, Advocacy Groups, Lobbying Firms
Think Tanks: a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as Health Policy, Social Policy
True or false: interest groups make policy
False
What is the primary purpose of law? How does law affect society?
The primary purpose of the law is to function as the main tool to organize an advanced,
society.
A widespread and complex society needs formal, enforceable rules of law to provide a measure of control
What is the role of law? What is a legal right?
The main way the law controls the many kinds of
relationships in society is to recognize and establish enforceable legal rights and to create the institutions necessary to define and enforce
them
A legal right means power or privilege guaranteed to an individual under the law, not
merely something claimed as an interest or a matter of governmental control
How is law defined?
The “law” is not just words on a page, but the many interacting parts involved in drafting
those words in the first place and bringing them to life once they have been enacted as laws.
The “law” is a system that entails regularly interacting and independent parts and subparts
coming together to form a functional, unified whole
What are the 4 sources of law?
- Constitution
- Statutes
- Regulations
- Common Law/Case Law
Give 5 details about the separation of powers.
One of the important aspects of Federal and State constitutional design
The legal philosophy that arrange and shared governance
Guard against a concentration of political power
Includes concept of “Checks and Balances”
Counterbalancing Effects control an organization or system to ensure power is not concentrated in the hands of people or organizations
What is federalism?
Refers to the allocation of Federal and State legal authority
Under the Constitution, the Federal Government is one of the limited powers, while the States retain all powers not expressly left exclusively to
the federal government
What are 3 details related to the role of courts?
Courts have responsibility to determine what the Constitution means, Permits, and Prohibits.
Courts protect and enforce individual legal rights,
prevent violating the Constitution, and maintain
stability in the law by applying legal precedents.
Courts are expected to uphold and enforce the
constitutional right for individuals
What 3 groups make up the federal court system?
- Supreme Court
- Trial courts
- Appeal courts
How do we decide to make a law and carry it out?
Recognize the legal rights and create institutions necessary to define and enact laws
Which is more limited: federal or state powers?
Federal: limited powers
State: retains all powers not exclusive to Federal Government
What is due process?
Due Process: legal requirement that the state must respect all legal rights owed to a person. Due process balances the power of the Law of the Land and protects the individual person
