Question

Discuss the role of government in funding and regulation as it relates to ensuring delivery of quality health care: How successful have its efforts been? What effect have government efforts had on the private health care industry (e.g., care facilities, insurance companies, and drug companies)?

Answer 1

The government intends to make the health care services available to the people at an affordable price and at par quality. In this regard, the government passes the regulations to regulate the different segments of the health care industry. These regulations make the health care providers to comply with the law and deliver services as per the guidelines of the regulations. For example, the affordable care act of the Obama administration made it mandatory for the employers to give health insurance to the employees. On a similar note American health care act of the Trump Administration regulates the health care in different ways with the objective to reduce the cost and offer it to the population. While regulating the health care, the government brings funding arrangement. The different sources of funding are the higher deductions from the salary & wages of the employees, contributions from the employers and government funding from the taxes it collects. The government can float bonds also to finance the funding requirements that are not met by the employee and employer contributions. So, government has active role to play in regulation and funding for the quality as well as affordable health care. The efforts are successful, but are not able to meet the expectations of the different sections of the society. For example, affordable care act was people oriented, but it puts additional burden upon the employers to deliver health insurance to everyone. No doing so, will result in penalty and fine paid to the government. The American health care act, helped the companies, but it puts more burden upon the people to pay more. So, the focus to help, changed from people to firm in this policy. So, the effort is meeting a limited success.
As per the government regulations, the health care facilities, has to focus upon the quality of care and the pricing should take place on the basis of results achieved. The facilities should give attention to the alternative methods of treatment that are equally effective, but less costly. Drug companies should be regulated to so that prices should not go beyond the reach of the poor people. Efforts have been made to make the private insurers to insure those people also who are suffering from the existing diseases. So, it is a good regulation for those who already have preexisting diseases. Here, price control is not so effective, though provisions are made by the government to reimburse the cost of medicines for the poor people.