
To provide definitions to terms used regularly by third party payers and explain these terms affect the providers’ incentives, fees and overall utilization.
a)
Fee for service payment model.

Answer to Problem 1QAP
The fee for service payment model is a traditional payment method in medical care where the provider bills for each service provided.
Explanation of Solution
Within a fee for service payment model providers can pass reimburse all their costs, with no regard on how inefficient the production of services. This system can be described as a cost-plus pricing system.
There is no incentive for providers to search for more efficient methods of production in a cost-plus environment. Furthermore, patients have no incentive to search for providers who offer lower prices. In comparison, competitive markets reward providers for offering quality products at the lowest price. However, in cost-plus markets, providers are rewarded by offering more services at higher prices while passing on the additional costs to third-party payers.
Introduction:
Certain concepts that exist within health care involve certain variances in terms of providers’ incentives, fees and overall utilization.
b)
Assignment.
b)

Answer to Problem 1QAP
An assignment can be defined as a Medicare policy that provides physicians a guaranteed payment of 80 percent of the allowable fee. By accepting an assignment, physicians agree to accept the allowable fee as full payment and forgo the practice of balance billing.
Explanation of Solution
From the perspective of the physician, the problem of assignment centers on the relationship between the fee usually charged for the service provided and the Medicare allowable fee, which is often much lower. Physicians' issue with the Medicare allowable fee is that it is below their average cost of providing medical services. Even though providing care to the Medicare segment of the market may not cover fully allocated costs, each transaction is reimbursed at a rate that covers the physician’s
c)
Capitation.
c)

Answer to Problem 1QAP
Capitation can be defined as a payment method that provides a fixed, per capita payment to providers for a specified medical benefits package. Capitation requires the providers to treat a well-defined population for a fixed sum of money, paid in advance, without regard to the number or nature of the services provided to each person.
Explanation of Solution
Providing care for a fixed fee changes the nature of the physician-patient relationship. Capitation has reduced the incentive of providers to purchase services that are largely unnecessary and take advantage of uninformed consumers. However, there is a risk of omitting potentially beneficial care in the name of cost-saving. However, under capitation, all necessary care is provided for a well-defined group. Hence utilization of services is in control of the provider.
d)
Risk Sharing.
d)

Answer to Problem 1QAP
Risk sharing contracts involves in the spreading of financial risks of health care towards the providers.
Explanation of Solution
Risk-sharing discourages the over utilization of services, the use of expensive technology, brand-name prescription drugs, referrals to specialists, and inpatient hospital procedures. Many managed care plans contract with primary care physicians using either prepayment or capitation (lump-sum payments per enrollee determined in advance). Prepayment shifts the financial risk to the providers. Rather than making payments on a per-service basis, primary care physicians will receive a fixed payment determined in advance to provide all necessary primary and preventive care for a specific group of patients. Some managed care plans involve withholding a percentage of the authorized payment so that providers control utilization and cost. Primary care physicians serve as gatekeepers who are under strict budgets for hospital services, specialty referrals, and prescription drugs for patients they cover. Bonuses are provided to physicians who provide care within the predetermined budgets. Those who do not are penalized. They are penalized through either forfeiting part or all of their withholdings to the plan. This risk-sharing arrangement provides strong incentives for physicians to control utilization.
Want to see more full solutions like this?
Chapter 8 Solutions
EBK HEALTH ECONOMICS AND POLICY
- What are the 4 main parts of circular diagram?arrow_forwardWhat is absolute advantage?arrow_forwardGood Day, Kindly requesting assistance with this also Briefly explain how elasticity affects government health policies in the following cases:● Taxes on unhealthy products (cigarettes, alcohol, sugary drinks)● Subsidizing Preventive Care (e.g., vaccines, screenings)● Drug Price Controls & Generic Substitutions● Co-Payments & Insurance Designarrow_forward
- Good Day, Kindly assist with the following query: ● Cost–benefit Analysis● Cost-effectiveness analysis● Cost–utility analysis● Cost analysis or Cost Minimization Analysis For each of the following health policy questions listed below, identify and briefly explain which type of economic evaluation in question above would be most appropriate to use: ● The Ministry of Finance wants to know whether it is worth investing further resources into malaria control or building new primary schools? ● The Ministry of Health wants to compare the costs of receiving intravenous antibiotics in a hospital with receiving the same antibiotics (at the same doses) at home via a home health care service. ● The Ministry of Health wants to compare the costs and outcomes of two interventions for the treatment of early stage breast cancer: mastectomy without breast reconstruction compared to breast conserving surgery and radiotherapy (breast conservation). ● A malaria control programme wants to use economic…arrow_forwardSubstitute X=20. Can you show me how to do question 1 pleasearrow_forwardBlue Air Inc., has net sales of $740,000 and accounts receivables of $163,000. What is the firm's accounts receivables turnover?arrow_forward
- Please answer questions D-H, I have already answered A , B,C but it may help you to still solve them yourself. Thank you!arrow_forward2. A firm’s production function is given by:Q = 10KLThe unit capital and labour costs are 2 and 1 pounds respectively. The firm is contracted to produce2000 units.(a) Write out the optimisation problem of the firm. (b) Express this problem using a Lagrangian function. (c) Find values of K and L which fulfil the contract with minimal cost to the firm. (d) Calculate the total cost to the firm.arrow_forward3. Consider the following estimated regression equation, estimated using a sample of firms, where RDis total firm spending on research and development in USD ($), Revenue is total firm revenuein USD ($), and W ages is the firms’ total spending on wages in USD ($) (standard errors inparentheses):RDd = 1000(600)+ 0.5(0.1)Revenue + 1.5(0.5)W ages,(a) Interpret the coefficients on each of the explanatory variables. (b) Which of the three coefficients are statistically significant at the 5% level of significance? Howdo you know? A researcher runs a two-sided statistical test of the null hypothesis that both the coefficients onthe explanatory variables above are jointly equal to 0.25 (mathematically, that β1 = β2 = 0.25),and reports a p-value of 0.045.(c) What does this p-value mean for the outcome of the test? (d) What would an appropriate two-sided alternative hypothesis look like?arrow_forward
- Microeconomics: Private and Public Choice (MindTa...EconomicsISBN:9781305506893Author:James D. Gwartney, Richard L. Stroup, Russell S. Sobel, David A. MacphersonPublisher:Cengage LearningEconomics: Private and Public Choice (MindTap Cou...EconomicsISBN:9781305506725Author:James D. Gwartney, Richard L. Stroup, Russell S. Sobel, David A. MacphersonPublisher:Cengage Learning
- Managerial Economics: A Problem Solving ApproachEconomicsISBN:9781337106665Author:Luke M. Froeb, Brian T. McCann, Michael R. Ward, Mike ShorPublisher:Cengage LearningExploring EconomicsEconomicsISBN:9781544336329Author:Robert L. SextonPublisher:SAGE Publications, Inc





