The health care, policy-making process is composed of three major stages; the formulation stage, legislative stage, and the implementation stage. The policy process refers to the specific decisions and events that are required for a policy to be proposed, considered, and finally either implemented and/or set aside. It is an interactive process with multiple points of access providing opportunities to influence the multiple decision makers involved at each stage (Abood, 2007). Each stage presents a unique set of events for a policy to be proposed, considered, and either implemented or rejected. In the formulation stage there is an input of ideas, information, and research from government officials, citizens, and special interest groups. The issue is framed and the purpose and outcome is defined. Finally strategies are chosen and the necessary resources are identified. In the legislative stage the policy must be discussed by congress, agreed on and signed into law. In the implementation stage the policy is put into effect, human resources and funding are allocated. After a new policy is implemented, advocates, opponents, or other “interested parties” begin to consider the consequences of the decision and its implementation (Cockrel, 2007). Abood (2007), “The overall health care system, including the public and private sectors, and the political forces that affect that system are shaped by the health care, policy-making process” (The Policy Process and the Politics of Health Care). This paper will examine how the Medicare program has gone through the formulation, legislative, and implementation stage of the health care policy-making process and describe each stage of the process.…
