course material

1. Health care economics and Financing Discussion
Health care economics and Financing DiscussionORDER HERE FOR ORIGINAL,
PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPERS ON Health care economics and Financing DiscussionHealth
Care Economics and FinancingNumerous sources report that the United States spends more
per capita on health care than other industrialized nations. In 2010, Medicare and Medicaid
Services stated that medical-related expenditures exceeded 2.6 trillion dollars; however,
indications are that these high expenditures are not improving health outcomes to the
degree expected. What makes containing health care costs so difficult? What are the ethical
issues of balancing cost with providing greater access to health care and improving
quality?This week, you will consider health care economics and how cost influences the
decision-making process regarding coverage. You will also examine the trade-offs related to
cost, quality, and access—three factors that drive the health care policy process.Learning
Objectives Students will:Analyze ethical and economic challenges related to policy decisions
concerning health care in the United StatesAssess the major reimbursement mechanisms
for health care services in the United StatesAnalyze trade-offs related to cost, quality, and
accessPhoto Credit: David M. Elmore/Moment/Getty ImagesLearning ResourcesNote: To
access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course
Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.Required
ReadingsKnickman, J. R., & Kovner, A. R. (Eds.). (2015). Health care delivery in the united
states (11th ed.). New York, NY: Springer Publishing.Chapter 11, “Health Care Financing”
(pp. 231–251)This chapter attempts to unravel several of the complexities in America’s
health care system, and it also provides an analysis of the health care/insurer/patient
relationship and how hospitals are actually funded. Health care economics and Financing
DiscussionChapter 12, “Health Care Costs and Value” (pp. 253–270)Rising costs of health
care and potential approaches to constraining growth in health care expenditures are
examined in this chapter.Chapter 10, “Health Workforce” (pp. 213–225)This chapter looks
at the nature of the supply and demand for health care professionals in the United
States.Milstead, J. A. (2019). Health policy and politics: A nurse’s guide (6th ed.). Burlington,
MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.Chapter 10, “Overview: The Economics and Finance of
Health Care” (pp. 170-190)This chapter breaks down the basic elements of economics as
they relate to health care, explaining how consumer choice combined with limitations on
what hospitals can supply affects the type of care given.Reinhardt, U. E. (2010, Jan 20). State
of the nation (a special report): Voices—A good start. The Wall Street Journal, p.
R5.Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.This article describes how the U.S. health

2. care reform bill seeks to obtain better value for the U.S. health care dollar by generating
more research into cost-effective care. Stein, R. (2010, November 8). Review of prostate
cancer drugs Provenge renews medical cost-benefit debate. The Washington Post. Retrieved
from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
dyn/content/article/2010/11/07/AR2010110705205.html This article describes a federal
review conducted to determine whether Medicare expenditures should be allocated to an
expensive prostate cancer vaccine. The author details both sides of the debate on the
issue.Required MediaLaureate Education (Producer). (2012c). Healthcare economics and
financing. Baltimore, MD: Author.Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 16
minutes.Accessible player –Downloads– Download Video w/CC Download Audio Download
Transcript Optional ResourcesThe following resources may support the Assignment;
however, they are not required readings.Müller, D., Zimmering, M., Chan, C., McFarlane, P.,
Pierratos, A., & Querfeld, U. (2008). Intensified hemodialysis regimens: Neglected treatment
options for children and adolescents. Pediatric Nephrology, 23(10), 1729–1736.Retrieved
from the Walden Library databases.Neil, N., Walker, D. R., Sesso, R., Blackburn, J., Tschosik,
E. A., Sciaraffia, V., & … Bhattacharyya, S. K. (2009). Gaining efficiencies: Resources and
demand for dialysis around the globe. Value in Health, 12(1), 73–79.Retrieved from the
Walden Library databases.Financing of Health CareWith coinciding concerns about health
care costs and the imperative to improve quality of care, health care providers and others
face difficult decisions in the effort to achieve an appropriate balance. Such decisions often
are addressed in the policy arena. How do policymakers evaluate which health care services
should be financed through government programs? How do ethics-related questions and
other considerations play into this evaluation process? Is it possible to contain costs and
provide accessible, high-quality care to all, or is the tension between cost and care inherent
in the U.S. health care delivery system? These questions are central to health care financing
decisions in the United States. Health care economics and Financing DiscussionFor this
Discussion, you will focus on the policy decision-making process that determines what
types of care are covered by public and private insurers and the ethical aspects of such
financial decisions.To prepare:Read the case study “Economic Impact of States Declining
Medicaid Expansion” page 190 of the Milstead text.Review the information in the
Washington Post article “Review of Prostate Cancer Drugs Provenge Renews Medical Cost-
Benefit Debate” in the Learning Resources.Consider how policy decisions currently are
made about what will and will not be paid for and what changes, if any, could improve the
process.Reflect on how the Washington Post example illustrates the tension between cost
and care.Write your analysis and assessment of the ethical and economic challenges related
to policy decisions such as those presented in the Washington Post article. How does this
type of situation contribute to the tension between cost and care? Substantiate your
response with at least two outside resources. Reference:National Health Expenditures 2010
Highlights, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.cms.gov/NationalHealthExpendData/downloads/highlights.pdfReference:Mil
stead, J. A. (2016). Health policy and politics: A nurse’s guide (5th ed.). Burlington, MA:
Jones and Bartlett Publishers.Health care economics and Financing Discussion