Question

1. Provide a high-level overview of the US health care system. Discuss how your personal worldview may influence your perspective on the healthcare system in relation to cost, quality, and access.(include references)

2. Discuss the commonalities and differences between individual and population health. Provide an example of each, along with a time when a provider would be concerned about both concurrently.(include references)

3. The Pareto efficiency is a simple idea, but it is difficult to achieve. Why is this? Provide an example (include references)

Answer 1

1) The U.S. health care system is not a universally accessible system – it is a publicly and privately-funded patchwork of fragmented systems and programs. Insured Americans are covered by both public and private health insurance, with a majority covered by private insurance plans through their employers.

#. Characteristics of the U.S. Health Care System :-

No central governing agency and little integration and coordination.

Technology-driven deliver system focusing on acute care.

High in cost, unequal in access, and average in outcome.

Delivery of health care under imperfect market conditions.

#. Principles of US Healthcare system :-

- market commodity

- 20th century, power in medical profession

- historically, little influence from government

- no uniform standard of care; quality depends on ability to pay

2) Individual Health

-people reponsible for their own health

-focus is on one disease at a time

-if they follow MD's orders, recovery or preserved health is expected

-focused on one person, the their family history, lifestyle, living environment

#. Population health definition

-The health outcomes of a group of individuals, including the distribution of such outcomes within the group.

-the variable distribution of disease in a population

3) Pareto Efficiency :-

State of resource allocation from which it is impossible to reallocate so as to make any one individual or preference criterion better off without making at least one individual or preference criterion worse off. It is difficult to achieve because equilibrium is not maintained .