Health of nations : an international perspective on U.S. health care reform / Laurene A. Graig; [foreword by John D. Rockefeller IV].

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Graig, Laurene A.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Medical care--Finance--Case studies.

Medical care.

Medical care--United States--Finance.

Health insurance--Government policy.

Health insurance.

Medical care--Finance.

United States.

Finance.

Health insurance--Government policy--Case studies.

Health insurance--Government policy--United States.

Health care reform--United States.

Health care reform.

Health Policy.

Health Services--economics.

Insurance, Health.

Medical Subjects:

Health Policy.

United States.

Health Services--economics.

Insurance, Health.

Genre:

Case studies.

Physical Description:

xv, 222 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Edition:

Third edition.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : Congressional Quarterly, [1999]

Summary:

In the six years since the last edition of Health of Nations was published, important changes have occurred in nations facing major health care issues. In this thoroughly revised third edition, author Laurene Graig analyzes the health care delivery systems in each of these countries and makes expert and insightful assessments about what works....what doesn't work...and what promising new ideas are now being tested.

Today's health care environment around the world is so different from the one covered in the 1993 edition of Health of Nations. In the U.S. in particular, there is growing discontent with the quality and cost of managed care, fueling new demands for legislative action. Public interest in health care remains high and will increase as savings from managed care begin to level off and health costs begin to rise again.

The third edition of Health of Nations is completely updated, including the following new information: -- Developments in U.S. health care policy since the Clinton Plan, including discussion of the proposed plan and its failure; incremental reform measures that have been put in place such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP); changes to the Medicare program; -- The growth and development of managed care: impact on the U.S. health care system and the public backlash against managed care; -- Problems facing the U.S. health care system such as the rising number of uninsured; -- Updated analyses and data related to the health care systems of five other industrialized nations and health reform efforts undertaken by these countries; -- and much, much more.

Health ofNations provides detailed overviews of the health care systems of the United States, Canada, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom -- compares and contrasts the health care systems of these five other nations with the United States. In addition, the book is an excellent reference guide for students of international policy or anyone who seeks answers to questions such as: -- How much does each nation spend on health care?-- How is health care paid for in different countries?-- What percentage of the population is covered by public vs. private insurance?-- What methods are used to control health care costs?-- What role does each country's government play?

While no ideal health care system may exist today, other nations provide comprehensive coverage and universal access while spending significantly less on health care than the United States. Health of Nations provides an excellent cross-national comparison of the major health care systems in existence today.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Health Care: an International Perspective 1

Health Care Paradigms 2

Health Services Continuum 3

Convergence among Health Systems 4

Limits to Convergence 7

Parameters of the Study 7

Chapter 2 Managing the U.S. Health Care System 9

A System in Constant Flux 9

Health Insurance Coverage in the United States 13

Back to the Future 17

Health Care Reform Takes Center Stage 20

Managed Care's Transformation of the U.S. Health Care System 22

From There to Here 23

Managed Care's Impact on Provider Payment 27

Managed Care as Effective Agent of Cost Control 29

Costs: What Goes Down Must Come Up 30

Managed Care under Fire 33

The Future: Incremental Approach as the Only Game in Town 35

It Ain't Over Yet 38

Chapter 3 German Health Care: Bismarck's Grand (and Enduring) Design 40

Overview of the German Health Care System 41

Health Care Expenditures, Then and Now 42

Present at the Creation: Tracing the Roots of National Health Insurance 45

The Current System: Health Care Benefits, Organization, and Financing 49

Outside the Sickness Fund System: The Privately Insured 54

Long-Term Care Insurance Program 55

Health Care Delivery 56

Twenty Years of Health Care Cost Control: 1977-Present 60

Health Care Reform as a Permanent State? 65

Convergence 71

Chapter 4 Health Care in the Netherlands: Managed Competition Goes Dutch 73

Overview of the Dutch Health Care System 74

Dutch Health Care: History and Current Organization 75

Health Care Financing 80

Health Care Delivery 80

Health Care Reform in the Netherlands 83

Outlook for the Future 87

Changing Roles in the Dutch Health Care Sector 88

Convergence 89

Chapter 5 Made in Japan: Universal Health Insurance 91

The Japanese Advantage 91

Confluence of East and West 95

Legislating Health Insurance Coverage 98

Organized Complexity 99

Health Care Delivery 107

Controlling Health Care Costs: Nationwide Fee Schedule 110

The Sun Also Sets on Japanese Health Care 112

Convergence 119

Chapter 6 Northern Exposure: Canada's National Health Insurance System 121

Overview of Canadian Health Care 123

Canadian National Health Insurance: A Long Time Coming 124

Medicare Is Born 127

Political and Cultural Underpinnings of Canadian Health Care 128

Health Care Delivery in Canada 130

Canadian Health Care Financing 133

Health Care Cost-Control, Canadian-Style 140

The Future of Canadian Health Care 146

Convergence 147

Chapter 7 Reforming the British National Health Service 151

Overview of British Health Care 153

Britain's Sacred Cow: The National Health Service 154

NHS Financing 156

Health Care Delivery 160

The Role of the Private Sector 163

NHS Reforms: Working for Patients 164

Toward the NHS's Next Half Century 170

Convergence 173

Chapter 8 International Experience and U.S. Health Care 175

The United States Is Unique 177

Limited Convergence among Systems 179

Aging Populations 180

The Future of U.S. Health Care 182

Appendix Six Systems at a Glance 185.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 191-216) and index.

ISBN:

1568023618

156802360X

OCLC:

41400733