Health Care
In: The Welfare State in Britain since 1945, S. 163-192
In: The Welfare State in Britain since 1945, S. 163-192
I present a historical study of the role played by the World Health Organization and UNICEF in the emergence and diffusion of the concept of primary health care during the late 1970s and early 1980s. I have analyzed these organizations' political context, their leaders, the methodologies and technologies associated with the primary health care perspective, and the debates on the meaning of primary health care.
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In: Motivation, Agency, and Public Policy, S. 95-106
In: Proceedings of the Academy of Political Science, Band 33, Heft 3, S. 82
In: Proceedings of the Academy of Political Science, Band 31, Heft 3, S. 175
IntroductionThe development of medicine in the last three decades has brought not only new diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities, but also new thinking about health in its interdisciplinary understanding. It is also a period in which wide-ranging actions for public health were undertaken through decisions made by politicians, economists and health care representatives. Measures expressed mathematically are used in health measurements, especially those concerning the entire population. There are three groups of measures of the health condition of the population: positive, negative and the so-called synthetic measures of health condition which combine, apart from health measures, many other elements. Aim The aim of the work is to analyze the economics of health care.Material and method Review of the available literature on the subject.ResultsA different approach related to the economic efficiency of access to public goods is the concept of investment in human capital. Grossman developed the theoretical foundations for such an understanding of the choices related to health and its protection in the 1970s. Grossman's theory is treated as a model of human capital. An important element of Grossman's model is the distinction between health treated as a product, i.e. a basic good, which is a source of utility for people, and medical care treated as a factor in the production of health. In Grossman's model, people both demand and produce health. Health is treated as a good produced by humans through various means, such as diet, healthy eating, a healthy lifestyle, and medical care. The efficiency of health production depends on the knowledge and education of the society. Medical care is only one input into health production. According to the presented model, each person at birth has a specific health resource that exhibits capital characteristics. This health is amortized with age, but it can also be increased (accumulated) by investing in it, e.g. by doing sports, eating healthy and also by protecting health. Grossman's model takes into account two important elements. First, health care is only one of the determinants of health. Second, people do not demand health care for its own sake: the utility of health consumption is derived not from health care itself, but from the health improvement it causes. In this perspective, health care is an economic good, it is human capital and if so, health can also be considered capital. They are often regarded as a fundamental good, being one of the real reasons for patients' expectations of healthcare, for which other, mostly tangible, products and services, such as healthcare, are simply methods of obtaining it. ConclusionsThe contemporary concept of health should be perceived on many levels, including not only biomedical and environmental determinants, but also social and professional functions performed by individuals. As a result of such perception, the value of human life should increase by expanding the meaning of health to include the concept of the ability to lead a meaningful, creative and satisfying life. There is an interrelated relationship between the development of the concept of health and the definition of public health and health policies. The evolution of the concept of health, its extension beyond purely biological-medical meaning, has led to the concept of public health and the involvement of governments in health policy. Financial expenses related to the implementation of state burdens in the implementation of health policy currently exceed the capabilities of many governments. "
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OBJECTIVE: To disentangle the relationships among food insecurity, health care utilization, and health care expenditures. DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING: We use national data on 13 465 adults (age ≥ 18) from the 2016 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), the first year of the food insecurity measures. STUDY DESIGN: We employ two‐stage empirical models (probit for any health care use/expenditure, ordinary least squares, and generalized linear models for amount of utilization/expenditure), controlling for demographics, health insurance, poverty status, chronic conditions, and other predictors. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Our results show that the likelihood of any health care expenditure (total, inpatient, emergency department, outpatient, and pharmaceutical) is higher for marginal, low, and very low food secure individuals. Relative to food secure households, very low food secure households are 5.1 percentage points (P < .001) more likely to have any health care expenditure, and have total health care expenditures that are 24.8 percent higher (P = .011). However, once we include chronic conditions in the models (ie, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, emphysema, high cholesterol, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and asthma), these underlying health conditions mitigate the differences in expenditures by food insecurity status (only the likelihood of any having any health care expenditure for very low food secure households remains statistically significant). CONCLUSIONS: Policy makers and government agencies are focused on addressing deficiencies in social determinants of health and the resulting impacts on health status and health care utilization. Our results indicate that chronic conditions are strongly associated with food insecurity and higher health care spending. Efforts to alleviate food insecurity should consider the dual burden of chronic conditions. Finally, future research can address specific mechanisms underlying the relationships between food security, health, and health care.
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In: University of Leicester School of Law Research Paper No. 13-10
SSRN
In: The annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Band 503, S. 89-98
ISSN: 0002-7162
With the increasing expense of medical technology & the growing number of older people, proposed changes in health care tend now to be governed more by considerations of cost than by quality of services. This tension between cost & quality also affects public willingness to invest in social components of health care despite their importance in enhancing quality of life. The tension emerges in sharpest contrast as scarce resources are allocated by gatekeepers in health maintenance organizations & in the arrangements for long-term care. With respect to financing, what seems to be needed is a creative mix of voluntary inputs from the community, private initiatives, & new programs of public entitlements. With respect to quality of care, it must be recognized that gains in the quality of life require programs that encourage older people's continued involvement & participation in social life & in active & healthy lifestyles. The evolving balance between medical & social interventions is discussed. Modified HA
IntroductionThe development of medicine in the last three decades has brought not only new diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities, but also new thinking about health in its interdisciplinary understanding. It is also a period in which wide-ranging actions for public health were undertaken through decisions made by politicians, economists and health care representatives. Measures expressed mathematically are used in health measurements, especially those concerning the entire population. There are three groups of measures of the health condition of the population: positive, negative and the so-called synthetic measures of health condition which combine, apart from health measures, many other elements. Aim The aim of the work is to analyze the economics of health care.Material and method Review of the available literature on the subject.ResultsA different approach related to the economic efficiency of access to public goods is the concept of investment in human capital. Grossman developed the theoretical foundations for such an understanding of the choices related to health and its protection in the 1970s. Grossman's theory is treated as a model of human capital. An important element of Grossman's model is the distinction between health treated as a product, i.e. a basic good, which is a source of utility for people, and medical care treated as a factor in the production of health. In Grossman's model, people both demand and produce health. Health is treated as a good produced by humans through various means, such as diet, healthy eating, a healthy lifestyle, and medical care. The efficiency of health production depends on the knowledge and education of the society. Medical care is only one input into health production. According to the presented model, each person at birth has a specific health resource that exhibits capital characteristics. This health is amortized with age, but it can also be increased (accumulated) by investing in it, e.g. by doing sports, eating healthy and also by protecting health. ...
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IntroductionThe development of medicine in the last three decades has brought not only new diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities, but also new thinking about health in its interdisciplinary understanding. It is also a period in which wide-ranging actions for public health were undertaken through decisions made by politicians, economists and health care representatives. Measures expressed mathematically are used in health measurements, especially those concerning the entire population. There are three groups of measures of the health condition of the population: positive, negative and the so-called synthetic measures of health condition which combine, apart from health measures, many other elements. Aim The aim of the work is to analyze the economics of health care.Material and method Review of the available literature on the subject.ResultsA different approach related to the economic efficiency of access to public goods is the concept of investment in human capital. Grossman developed the theoretical foundations for such an understanding of the choices related to health and its protection in the 1970s. Grossman's theory is treated as a model of human capital. An important element of Grossman's model is the distinction between health treated as a product, i.e. a basic good, which is a source of utility for people, and medical care treated as a factor in the production of health. In Grossman's model, people both demand and produce health. Health is treated as a good produced by humans through various means, such as diet, healthy eating, a healthy lifestyle, and medical care. The efficiency of health production depends on the knowledge and education of the society. Medical care is only one input into health production. According to the presented model, each person at birth has a specific health resource that exhibits capital characteristics. This health is amortized with age, but it can also be increased (accumulated) by investing in it, e.g. by doing sports, eating healthy and also by protecting health. ...
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