This is the most complete text available on the economics of health behavior and health care delivery. Appropriate both for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students of economics, this text provides the key analytical tools required to understand current research. Issues discussed include the "cost explosion" in health care, the power of medical associations, the search for remuneration systems with favorable incentives, and technological change in medicine. Rather than simplifying the issues facing today’s healthcare systems, the book models existing complexities as they are, adapting economics to reflect the views of the average person.
Presents research on some of these key issues such as the impact of obesity on health, children's' healthcare policies, education and health; and many more.
In the United States, some populations suffer from far greater disparities in health than others. Those disparities are caused not only by fundamental differences in health status across segments of the population, but also because of inequities in factors that impact health status, so-called determinants of health. Only part of an individual's health status depends on his or her behavior and choice; community-wide problems like poverty, unemployment, poor education, inadequate housing, poor public transportation, interpersonal violence, and decaying neighborhoods also contribute to health inequities, as well as the historic and ongoing interplay of structures, policies, and norms that shape lives. When these factors are not optimal in a community, it does not mean they are intractable: such inequities can be mitigated by social policies that can shape health in powerful ways. Communities in Action: Pathways to Health Equity seeks to delineate the causes of and the solutions to health inequities in the United States. This report focuses on what communities can do to promote health equity, what actions are needed by the many and varied stakeholders that are part of communities or support them, as well as the root causes and structural barriers that need to be overcome.
Folland, Goodman, and Stano’s bestselling The Economics of Health and Health Care text offers the market-leading overview of all aspects of Health Economics, teaching through core economic themes, rather than concepts unique to the health care economy. The Eighth Edition of this key textbook has been revised and updated throughout, and reflects changes since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In addition to its revised treatment of health insurance, the text also introduces the key literature on social capital as it applies to individual and public health, as well as looking at public health initiatives relating to population health and economic equity, and comparing numerous policies across Western countries, China, and the developing world. It provides up-to-date discussions on current issues, as well as a comprehensive bibliography with over 1,100 references. Extra material and teaching resources are now also available through the brand new companion website, which provides full sets of discussion questions, exercises, presentation slides, and a test bank. This book demonstrates the multiplicity of ways in which economists analyze the health care system, and is suitable for courses in Health Economics, Health Policy/Systems, or Public Health, taken by health services students or practitioners.
The Institute of Medicine study Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001) recommended that an interdisciplinary summit be held to further reform of health professions education in order to enhance quality and patient safety. Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality is the follow up to that summit, held in June 2002, where 150 participants across disciplines and occupations developed ideas about how to integrate a core set of competencies into health professions education. These core competencies include patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teams, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and informatics. This book recommends a mix of approaches to health education improvement, including those related to oversight processes, the training environment, research, public reporting, and leadership. Educators, administrators, and health professionals can use this book to help achieve an approach to education that better prepares clinicians to meet both the needs of patients and the requirements of a changing health care system.
This popular textbook provides a comprehensive but accessible coverage of health economic principles and applications. It provides an introduction for those with no previous knowledge of economics, but also more advanced material suitable for those with a background in economics. Now into its second edition, Barbara McPake and Charles Normand have incorporated developments in economic evaluation and economics of health systems from recent research and experience while retaining an accessible approach and style. The book starts with a section on basic economic principles as applied to health and health care, and goes on to discuss economic evaluation in health care, the economics of health systems and health care finance. Examples and illustrations are taken from a wide range of settings and world regions, reflecting the authors¿ belief that the same principles apply, and that it is useful to have some understanding of how different countries organise the health system. It provides an understanding of the performance of different health systems from the insurance based approaches in the United States to government funding that is common in Canada and most countries in Europe, and the mixed systems that operate in most low-income countries. This book is ideal for students in public health and related courses, for health care professionals and those studying health economics at a more advanced level.
The Oxford Handbook of Health Economics provides an accessible and authoritative guide to health economics, intended for scholars and students in the field, as well as those in adjacent disciplines including health policy and clinical medicine. The chapters stress the direct impact of health economics reasoning on policy and practice, offering readers an introduction to the potential reach of the discipline. Contributions come from internationally-recognized leaders in health economics and reflect the worldwide reach of the discipline. Authoritative, but non-technical, the chapters place great emphasis on the connections between theory and policy-making, and develop the contributions of health economics to problems arising in a variety of institutional contexts, from primary care to the operations of health insurers. The volume addresses policy concerns relevant to health systems in both developed and developing countries. It takes a broad perspective, with relevance to systems with single or multi-payer health insurance arrangements, and to those relying predominantly on user charges; contributions are also included that focus both on medical care and on non-medical factors that affect health. Each chapter provides a succinct summary of the current state of economic thinking in a given area, as well as the author's unique perspective on issues that remain open to debate. The volume presents a view of health economics as a vibrant and continually advancing field, highlighting ongoing challenges and pointing to new directions for further progress.
In today's world of scare resources, determining the optimal allocation of funds to preventive health care interventions (PHIs) is a challenge. The upfront investments needed must be viewed as long term projects, the benefits of which we will experience in the future. The long term positive change to PHIs from economic investment can be seen across multiple sectors such as health care, education, employment and beyond. Applied Health Economics for Public Health Practice and Research is the fifth in the series of Handbooks in Health Economic Evaluation. It presents new research on health economics methodology and application to the evaluation of public health interventions. Looking at traditional as well as novel methods of economic evaluation, the book covers the history of economics of public health and the economic rationale for government investment in prevention. In addition, it looks at principles of health economics, evidence synthesis, key methods of economic evaluation with accompanying case studies, and much more. Looking to the future, Applied Health Economics for Public Health Practice and Research presents priorities for research in the field of public health economics. It acknowledges the role played by natural environment in promoting better health, and the place of genetics, environment and socioeconomic status in determining population health. Ideal for health economists, public health researchers, local government workers, health care professionals, and those responsible for health policy development. Applied Health Economics for Public Health Practice and Research is an important contribution to the economic discussion of public health and resource allocation.
This book provides a robust set of health economic principles and methods to inform societal decisions in relation to research, reimbursement and regulation (pricing and monitoring of performance in practice). We provide a theoretical and practical framework that navigates to avoid common biases and suboptimal outcomes observed in recent and current practice of health economic analysis, as opposed to claiming to be comprehensive in covering all methods. Our aim is to facilitate efficient health system decision making processes in research, reimbursement and regulation, which promote constrained optimisation of community outcomes from a societal perspective given resource constraints, available technology and processes of technology assessment. Importantly, this includes identifying an efficient process to maximize the potential that arises from research and pricing in relation to existing technology under uncertainty, given current evidence and associated opportunity costs of investment. Principles and methods are identified and illustrated across health promotion, prevention and palliative care settings as well as treatment settings. Health policy implications are also highlighted.
Healthcare economics is a topic of increasing importance due to the substantial changes that are expected to radically alter the way Americans obtain and finance healthcare. Understanding Healthcare Economics, 2nd Edition provides an evidence-based framework to help practitioners comprehend the changes already underway in our nation’s healthcare system. It presents important economic facts and explains the economic concepts needed to understand the implications of these facts. It also summarizes the results of recent empirical studies on access, cost, and quality problems in today’s healthcare system. The material is presented in two sections. Section 1 focuses on the healthcare access, cost and quality issues that create pressures for change in health policy. The first edition was completed just as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was debated and passed. This new edition updates the information about access, cost, and quality issues. It also discusses the pressure for change that led to the passage of the PPACA, evidence that shaped the construction of the act, evidence on the impacts of the PPACA, and evidence on the pressures for future changes. Section 2 focuses on changes that are underway including: changes in the Medicare payment system; new types of healthcare delivery organizations such as ACOs and patient-centered medical homes. It also discusses the current efforts to help patients build health such as wellness programs and disease management programs. And finally, health information technology will be discussed. The new edition will maintain the current structure; however each chapter will be updated to discuss post-PPACA evidence on each type of type. In addition to the updates previously mentioned, the authors will present a series of data explorations to several chapters. Most of the new data explorations present summarized statistical information based on de-identified data from one hospital electronic data system. These data explorations serve two purposes. First, they illustrate the impacts of the pressures for change – and some of the changes – on healthcare providers. For example, the data illustrates the financial impact of pre-PPACA uncompensated care. Second, explanation of the data will require explanations of standard coding systems that are used nationwide (DRGs, CPT, ICD) codes. Other data explorations provide detail about other sources of data useful for health policy analysis, and for healthcare providers and insurers.
