terms comparison papaer
July 19, 2013
Terms Comparison Paper
The economics of healthcare is a complex subject. It is also a big portion of this country’s gross domestic product. According to our reading,
“Medical care in the United States is a trillion-dollar business, with an estimated average of $7,556 spent per person in 2007. 1 The 309 million citizens of the United States received services from more than 4,000 hospitals, 30,000 nursing homes, 800,000 physicians, 2.8 million registered nurses, and 9 million other health care workers. Individuals paid $262 billion, or 11 percent of total funding; private (mostly employer-based) health insurance paid 35 percent; and government, the largest payer, paid 47 percent (19 percent Medicare, 15 percent Medicaid, 13 percent other government programs. The remaining 7 percent of total health care financing came from a variety of other private sources (philanthropy, industrial clinics, interest and rental income of providers). The largest use of funds was the $794 billion spent on hospital care, 34 percent of the total.”(Getzen, 2006, Chapter 1). There are some terms that are essential to understanding the basics of healthcare economics and those are, quality, cost and technology. Though these may stand alone, in health care they are often interdependent and inter-related.
A key question is why spending on health care consistently rises more rapidly than spending on other goods and services. Health care experts point to the development and diffusion of medical technology as primary factors in explaining the persistent difference between health spending and overall economic growth, with some arguing that new medical technology may account for about one-half or more of real long-term spending.("technology," 2007). The term “medical technology” can be used to refer to the procedures, equipment, and processes by which medical care is delivered. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. and a good example of
Terms Comparison Paper
The economics of healthcare is a complex subject. It is also a big portion of this country’s gross domestic product. According to our reading,
“Medical care in the United States is a trillion-dollar business, with an estimated average of $7,556 spent per person in 2007. 1 The 309 million citizens of the United States received services from more than 4,000 hospitals, 30,000 nursing homes, 800,000 physicians, 2.8 million registered nurses, and 9 million other health care workers. Individuals paid $262 billion, or 11 percent of total funding; private (mostly employer-based) health insurance paid 35 percent; and government, the largest payer, paid 47 percent (19 percent Medicare, 15 percent Medicaid, 13 percent other government programs. The remaining 7 percent of total health care financing came from a variety of other private sources (philanthropy, industrial clinics, interest and rental income of providers). The largest use of funds was the $794 billion spent on hospital care, 34 percent of the total.”(Getzen, 2006, Chapter 1). There are some terms that are essential to understanding the basics of healthcare economics and those are, quality, cost and technology. Though these may stand alone, in health care they are often interdependent and inter-related.
A key question is why spending on health care consistently rises more rapidly than spending on other goods and services. Health care experts point to the development and diffusion of medical technology as primary factors in explaining the persistent difference between health spending and overall economic growth, with some arguing that new medical technology may account for about one-half or more of real long-term spending.("technology," 2007). The term “medical technology” can be used to refer to the procedures, equipment, and processes by which medical care is delivered. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. and a good example of
References: Brownlee, S., Delucci, J., & Walsh, T. (2012). What ’Health Care Costs’ really means. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/12/what-health-care-costs-really-means/266522/ Getzen, T. (2006). Terms of trade:the flow of fundsthrough the healthcare system. In A. Morris (Ed.), Health economics and financing (3 ed., pp. 37-38). Retrieved from How changes in medical technology affect health care costs. (2007). Retrieved from http://kff.org/health-costs/issue-brief/snapshots-how-changes-in-medical-technology-affect