Revised edition of: Our unsystematic health care system / Grace Budrys. Fourth edition. [2016]. Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
Chapter 1 : Introduction -- Chapter 2 : Public Health -- Public Health and Controversy -- Public Health Origins and Development -- State and Local Public Health Agencies -- Non-Governmental Public Health -- Public Health Accomplishments -- Efficacy of the COVID Vaccine -- A Recent Special Case -- Another Recent Case -- Chapter 3 : Private Health Insurance -- Origins of Private Health Insurance -- From a Community Rate to Risk Rating -- From Prepaid Care to Health Maintenance -- The Affordable Care Act -- The Individual Mandate -- The Employed Mandate -- Health Insurance and Prices -- Legislation Aimed at Health System Reform -- Chapter 4 : Health Insurance : Public Programs -- Origins of Medicare and Medicaid -- Medicare -- Part A -- Part B -- Part D -- Part C : Medicare Advantage Plans -- Medicare Advantage Business Operations -- Medicaid -- The ACA and Reform -- Public Opinion and Medicaid -- Medicaid and Managed Care -- State Child Health Insurance Program -- Continuing Policy Debates -- Chapter 5 : Health Care Occupations -- The Medical Profession -- Medical Specialization -- The Medical Education System -- The Organization of Medical Practice -- How Physicians Get Paid -- Medical Professionalism -- Medical Error and Malpractice -- Nurses -- Therapists -- Technicians and Technologists -- Other Practitioners -- Administrators and Other Administrative Workers -- Chapter 6 : Hospital and Other Healthcare Organizations -- A Brief History of the Modern Hospital -- Growth and Development -- Rising Costs of Care -- The Shorter Length of Stay -- Hospitals and Quality of Care -- Growth of the For-Profit Hospital Sector -- Consolidation of Nonprofit Hospitals -- The Chargemaster -- Differences by Hospital Ownership -- Other Healthcare Organizations -- Initiatives Aimed at Reducing Costs -- Chapter 7 : Pharmaceuticals -- Steps Involved in Creating a Drug -- Generic Drugs -- Orphan Drugs -- Pharmacy Benefit Managers -- Getting Drugs to Market Sooner -- Pharmacies -- Pharmaceutical Companies and the COVID-19 Vaccine -- Why Drugs Are So Expensive -- Where Things Stand in Trying to Control Costs -- -- Chapter 8 : Healthcare Systems in Other Countries -- Canada -- England -- Switzerland -- Japan -- Spain -- France -- Germany -- More On International Comparisons -- Some Final Observations -- Chapter 9 :. Determinants of Health -- Education and Inequality -- Deaths of Despair -- Health Disparities and Race -- Social Support Networks -- Upstream Versus Downstream Intervention -- Final Thoughts -- Addendum
Summary:
"A comprehensive and critical introduction to the U.S. health care system"-- Provided by publisher. Our Unsystematic Healthcare System presents readers with a comprehensive overview of the U.S. healthcare system with an emphasis on change. It opens with a comparison of U.S. life expectancy and national expenditures with those of other economically advanced countries. The chapters that follow outline the different sectors of the healthcare system including public health, physician and hospital networks, private and public health insurance plans, and the pharmaceutical industry. The book's conclusion considers forces outside of the healthcare system that play a role in determining Americans' health status and longevity. Our Unsystematic Healthcare System is the ideal book for introducing readers to the basics of the complex U.S. healthcare system in an accessible way. Includes a new chapter on public health outlines public health origins, workings, and achievements to give students the background needed to discuss current crises such as COVID-19 and the overturning of Roe v Wade (Chapter 2) ; a new chapter on the pharmaceutical industry explores drug development, advertising, and legislation to explore why the cost of drugs is so high (Chapter 7) ; a new chapter on the social determinants of health considers the World Health Organization's view that neither behavior nor healthcare arrangements are primarily responsible for people's health (Chapter 9) -- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.