Among various health cost containment strategies proposed during the 1970s, none has held more sustained fascination than the health maintenance organization (HMO). For many years, policy analysts in search of market- and incentive-based alternatives to “command and control” regulation have argued that medical groups combining prepayment and group practice, and offering comprehensive medical services within a fixed budget, would hold down costs both by their own efficient operations and by the competitive pressures they would apply to the conventional systems. During the 1970s, three presidents and five Congresses worked to formulate and implement legislation to increase the HMO presence nationwide, with very modest results. Some observers concluded that but for the well-intended but counterproductive efforts of the federal government, HMOs might thrive. Indeed, the Reagan administration has called for an end to direct federal financial involvement in building HMOs—though it has also promised legislation to promote HMOs and a newly competitive health care system based on revamped financial incentives and reinvigorated markets. In this book, Lawrence D. Brown, a senior fellow in the Brookings Governmental Studies program, examines the interplay between politics and policy in the federal HMO development effort between 1970 and 1980. He argues that the basic explanation for the disappointments of the policy analysts and federal supporters of HMOs lies not in a political miscarriage but in the overambitious promises of the policy strategy itself. Tracing the poor fit between policy and politics revealed by federal efforts to translate the attractive HMO idea into a workable strategy, Brown concludes that the episode augurs poorly for the competitive reforms frequently offered as a nonregulatory solution to rising health care costs in the 1980s.

This distinguished collection stands out from the recent flurry of books on health reform by its sustained and sophisticated analysis of the political dimension. In The Politics of Health Care Reform, some of America's best-known political scientists, historians, and legal scholars make sense of our most turbulent policy issue. They dig below the jargon and minutiae to explore the enduring questions of American politics, government reform, and health care. The Politics of Health Care Reform explains how successful reforms occur in the United States and shows what is unique about health care issues. Theoretically informed, politically astute, historically nuanced, this volume takes an inventory of our health policy infrastructure. Here is an account of the institutions, ideas, and interests that shape health policy in the 1990s: Congress, the federal courts, interest groups, state governments, the public bureaucracy, business (large and small), the insurance industry, the medical profession. The volume offers a fresh look at such critical matters as public opinion, the politics of race and gender, and the lessons we can draw from other nations. The Politics of Health Care Reform is the definitive collection of political science essays about health care. Expanded from two special issues of the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, the most prominent scholarly journal in the field it helped create, this collection will enliven the present debate over health reform and instruct everyone who is concerned about the future of American health care. Contributors. Lawrence Brown, Robert Evans, William Glaser, Colleen Grogan, Robert Hackey, Lawrence Jacobs, Nancy Jecker, Taeku Lee, Joan Lehman, David McBride, Ted Marmor, Cathie Jo Martin, James A. Morone, Mark Peterson, David Rochefort, Rand Rosenblatt, David Rothman, Joan Ruttenberg, Mark Schlesinger, Theda Skocpol, Michael Sparer, Deborah Stone, Kenneth Thorpe

This book provides a comprehensive examination of the ways that health policy has been shaped by the political, socioeconomic, and ideological environment of the United States. The roles played by public and private, institutional and individual actors in designing the healthcare system are identified at all levels. The book addresses the key problems of healthcare cost, access, and quality through analyses of Medicare, Medicaid, the Veterans Health Administration, and other programs, and the ethical and cost implications of advances in healthcare technology. This fully updated fourth edition gives expanded attention to the fiscal and financial impact of high healthcare costs and the struggle for healthcare reform, culminating in the passage of the Affordable Care Act, with preliminary discussion of implementation issues associated with the Affordable Care Act as well as attempts to defund and repeal it. Each chapter concludes with discussion questions and a comprehensive reference list. Helpful appendices provide a guide to websites and a chronology. PowerPoint slides and other instructional materials are available to instructors who adopt the book.

Fully updated for this new edition, Health Care Politics and Policy in America combines background and context for the evolution of U.S. health care policy with analysis of recent trends and current issues. The book introduces public policy students to the complex array of health care issues, and health care professionals to the study of public policy. It provides comprehensive coverage of policy issues related to health care at the federal, state, and provider/patient levels, from Medicare and Medicaid funding and managed care to medical liability law and ongoing debates over the beginning of life and end-of-life decisions. Health Care Politics and Policy in America successfully integrates political, ethical, economic, legal, technological, and medical factors in an issue-focused survey of U.S. health care policy. It includes a chronology of health care-policy-related events and legislation from 1798 through 2005, and an appendix comparing medical malpractice tort laws state-by-state.

Essential reading for every American who must navigate the US health care system. Why was the Obama health plan so controversial and difficult to understand? In this readable, entertaining, and substantive book, Stuart Altman—internationally recognized expert in health policy and adviser to five US presidents—and fellow health care specialist David Shactman explain not only the Obama health plan but also many of the intriguing stories in the hundred-year saga leading up to the landmark 2010 legislation. Blending political intrigue, policy substance, and good old-fashioned storytelling, this is the first book to place the Obama health plan within a historical perspective. The authors describe the sometimes haphazard, piece-by-piece construction of the nation’s health care system, from the early efforts of Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman to the later additions of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. In each case, they examine the factors that led to success or failure, often by illuminating little-known political maneuvers that brought about immense shifts in policy or thwarted herculean efforts at reform. The authors look at key moments in health care history: the Hill–Burton Act in 1946, in which one determined poverty lawyer secured the rights of the uninsured poor to get hospital care; the "three-layer cake" strategy of powerful House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Wilbur Mills to enact Medicare and Medicaid under Lyndon Johnson in 1965; the odd story of how Medicare catastrophic insurance was passed by Ronald Reagan in 1988 and then repealed because of public anger in 1989; and the fact that the largest and most expensive expansion of Medicare was enacted by George W. Bush in 2003. President Barack Obama is the protagonist in the climactic chapter, learning from the successes and failures chronicled throughout the narrative. The authors relate how, in the midst of a worldwide financial meltdown, Obama overcame seemingly impossible obstacles to accomplish what other presidents had tried and failed to achieve for nearly one hundred years.

Featuring analysis of healthcare issues and first-person stories, Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care helps you develop skills in influencing policy in today’s changing health care environment. 145 expert contributors present a wide range of topics in policies and politics, providing a more complete background than can be found in any other policy textbook on the market. Discussions include the latest updates on conflict management, health economics, lobbying, the use of media, and working with communities for change. The revised reprint includes a new appendix with coverage of the new Affordable Care Act. With these insights and strategies, you’ll be prepared to play a leadership role in the four spheres in which nurses are politically active: the workplace, government, professional organizations, and the community. Up-to-date coverage on the Affordable Care Act in an Appendix new to the revised reprint. Comprehensive coverage of healthcare policies and politics provides a broader understanding of nursing leadership and political activism, as well as complex business and financial issues. Expert authors make up a virtual Nursing Who's Who in healthcare policy, sharing information and personal perspectives gained in the crafting of healthcare policy. Taking Action essays include personal accounts of how nurses have participated in politics and what they have accomplished. Winner of several American Journal of Nursing "Book of the Year" awards! A new Appendix on the Affordable Care Act, its implementation as of mid-2013, and the implications for nursing, is included in the revised reprint. 18 new chapters ensure that you have the most up-to-date information on policy and politics. The latest information and perspectives are provided by nursing leaders who influenced health care reform with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.

Featuring analysis of cutting-edge healthcare issues and first-person stories, Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care, 7th Edition is the leader in helping students develop skills in influencing policy in today’s changing health care environment. Approximately 150 expert contributors present a wide range of topics in this classic text, providing a more complete background than can be found in any other policy textbook on the market. Discussions include the latest updates on conflict management, health economics, lobbying, the use of media, and working with communities for change. With these insights and strategies, you'll be prepared to play a leadership role in the four spheres in which nurses are politically active: the workplace, government, professional organizations, and the community. Comprehensive coverage of healthcare policies and politics provides a broader understanding of nursing leadership and political activism, as well as complex business and financial issues. Taking Action essays include personal accounts of how nurses have participated in politics and what they have accomplished. Expert authors make up a virtual Nursing Who's Who in healthcare policy, sharing information and personal perspectives gained in the crafting of healthcare policy. Winner of several American Journal of Nursing "Book of the Year" awards! NEW! Nine new chapters ensure you have the most up-to-date information on key topics such as ethical dimensions of policy and politics, patient engagement, public health, women's reproductive health, emergency preparedness, new health insurance exchanges, and much more. NEW! The latest information and perspectives are provided by nursing leaders who influenced health care reform, including the Affordable Care Act. NEW! Emphasis on evidence-based policy throughout the text. NEW! A list of web links is included in most chapters for further study.

Featuring analysis of cutting-edge healthcare issues and first-person stories, Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care, 7th Edition is the leader in helping students develop skills in influencing policy in today's changing health care environment. Approximately 150 expert contributors present a wide range of topics in this classic text, providing a more complete background than can be found in any other policy textbook on the market. Discussions include the latest updates on conflict management, health economics, lobbying, the use of media, and working with communities for change. With these insights and strategies, you'll be prepared to play a leadership role in the four spheres in which nurses are politically active: the workplace, government, professional organizations, and the community. Comprehensive coverage of healthcare policies and politics provides a broader understanding of nursing leadership and political activism, as well as complex business and financial issues. Taking Action essays include personal accounts of how nurses have participated in politics and what they have accomplished. Expert authors make up a virtual Nursing Who's Who in healthcare policy, sharing information and personal perspectives gained in the crafting of healthcare policy. Winner of several American Journal of Nursing "Book of the Year" awards! NEW! Nine new chapters ensure you have the most up-to-date information on key topics such as ethical dimensions of policy and politics, patient engagement, public health, women's reproductive health, emergency preparedness, new health insurance exchanges, and much more. NEW! The latest information and perspectives are provided by nursing leaders who influenced health care reform, including the Affordable Care Act. NEW! Emphasis on evidence-based policy throughout the text. NEW! A list of web links is included in most chapters for further study.

Policy and Politics for Nurses and Other Healthcare Professionals: Advocacy and Action provides a nursing focus within an interdisciplinary approach, which intertwines to create an understanding of economics, politics, and policy in relation to health care. Contributors to this text offer future nurses and healthcare providers keen insight about clinical practice and its derivation from regulation, laws, and policies that have roots in public policy and politics. This innovative text also offers practical knowledge on how healthcare professionals can get involved and be proactive in the policy that directly affects their profession and patients. Key pedagogical features include chapter objectives, summaries, examples, boxed articles, case studies, review questions, key terms, photographs, and a tool kit that includes a "skills" section.

Health Politics in Europe: A Handbook is a major new reference work, which provides historical background and up-to-date information and analysis on health politics and health systems throughout Europe. In particular, it captures developments that have taken place since the end of the Cold War, a turning point for many European health systems, with most post-communist transition countries privatizing their state-run health systems, and many Western European health systems experimenting with new public management and other market-oriented health reforms. Following three introductory, stage-setting chapters, the handbook offers country cases divided into seven regional sections, each of which begins with a short regional outlook chapter that highlights the region's common characteristics and divergent paths taken by the separate countries, including comparative data on health system financing, healthcare access, and the political salience of health. Each regional section contains at least one detailed main case, followed by shorter treatments of the other countries in the region. Country chapters feature a historical overview focusing on the country's progression through a series of political regimes and the consequences of this history for the health system; an overview of the institutions and functioning of the contemporary health system; and a political narrative tracing the politics of health policy since 1989. This political narrative, the core of each country case, examines key health reforms in order to understand the political motivations and dynamics behind them and their impact on public opinion and political legitimacy. The handbook's systematic structure makes it useful for country-specific, cross-national, and topical research and analysis.