Health Care Financing

Health care financing doesn't sound like a very stimulating topic but I found an article on NPR.org that was more thought provoking and inspired more critical thinking than the text book. We all know that the health care law/bill is a hot topic right now. Let's combine current events with the reading of the text.

Health care providers have to get paid in order to have any incentive to do their job. Therefore, financing is an obvious necessity of health care. There is a definite fine line between providers having incentive for a job well done and profitable greed. So, how does a nation provide incentive and keep costs affordable for consumers? The new health care law introduces Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). ACOs focus on sustainable and reliable care for Medicare recipients. Some states are proposing to provide ACOs for people with private insurance as well. "With baby boomers entering retirement age, the costs of the program for elderly and disabled Americans are expected to soar (Gold, 2011)." I encourage you to browse this article and familiarize yourself with ACOs. They are expected to take effect next January; it would be beneficial to learn about the concepts now.

ACOs are a new model for delivering health services that offers doctors and hospitals financial incentives to provide good quality care to Medicare beneficiaries while keeping down costs. (http://www.npr.org/2011/01/18/132937232/accountable-care-organizations-explained. Gold, 2011.)