The Economics of Health Reconsidered, Fifth Edition

The fifth edition of The Economics of Health Reconsidered continues to challenge the reliance on market forces to address health policy issues, and it argues instead for the value of government intervention. By critically examining economic theory as applied to the healthcare sector, the authors encourage readers to question the assumptions on which the perceived success of the competitive-healthcare-market model is based. This updated text focuses on how the unique characteristics of healthcare challenge the effectiveness of traditional economic remedies. Chapters explore demand and supply, equity, expenditures, and economic evaluations.

This edition’s updates include new chapters on:

• Social determinants of health that explores the effects of education, income, gender, sexual- and gender-minority identities, early childhood experiences, neighborhood effects, and race/ethnicity on demand for health
• Behavioral economics, including how decision making compares to the view assumed by the traditional economic framework

The book illustrates how the government plays a crucial role in making the healthcare sector not only more equitable but also more efficient.

Lynn Unruh, PhD, RN, is a professor emerita in the School of Global Health Management and Informatics at the University of Central Florida. Dr. Unruh received her bachelor of science degree in nursing from the University of Illinois and her doctorate in economics from the University of Notre Dame. She has published extensively on nurse staffing and quality in hospitals and nursing homes, the nursing workforce, the work environment in hospitals and nursing homes, the organizational responses of hospitals and nursing homes to reimbursement and regulatory and market forces. Andrew J. Barnes, PhD, MPH, is a professor in the Department of Health Behavior and Policy at Virginia Commonwealth University. He earned his doctorate from the Department of Health Policy and Management at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and his master of public health degree from Tulane University. Dr. Barnes publishes books, articles, and policy briefs on intersecting behavioral economics, health policy, and substance use. His research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, the US Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Thomas Rice, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Between 2006 and 2011, he also served as vice chancellor of academic personnel for UCLA. Dr. Rice received his doctorate in economics from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1982. Dr. Rice has published widely on issues such as the behavioral economics of healthcare, competition and regulation in health services, comparative healthcare systems, health insurance, physicians’ economic behavior, cost containment, and the Medicare program.

Chapter 1 - Why Should the Economics of Health Be Reconsidered? Chapter 2 - The Traditional Competitive Model Chapter 3 - Assumptions Underlying the Competition Model and Implications for Markets and Governments Chapter 4 - Demand for Health and Its Social Determinants Chapter 5 - Demand for Health Insurance and Health Services Chapter 6 - Competition in the Supply of Healthcare Chapter 7 - The Profit Motive in Healthcare Chapter 8 - The Healthcare Workforce Chapter 9 - Equity and Justice Chapter 10 - Behavioral Economics Chapter 11 - Healthcare Expenditures Chapter 12 - Economic Evaluation in Healthcare Chapter 13 - Healthcare Systems in High-Income Countries; Organization, Outcomes, and Lessons