Health Regulation and Knowledge Application

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1. What is the role of government in regulating behavior and providing resources? Support your answer.

The role of the government (federal and state) in regulating health care behaviour and resources is divided. Historically, the "states created the federal government and granted to the federal government specific, but limited, powers over matters deemed to be national in scope, such as national defense, foreign policy, and creating a national currency and postal system. Health care is not mentioned in the U.S. constitution. Each state government has the general power to protect the health, safety, morals and order of the population within its geographic boundaries--this is known as the "police power." The police power gives the states very broad authority to pass many kinds of laws to protect the health and safety of its residents, as long as the laws do not interfere with the rights of individuals that are guaranteed by the constitution" (http://dcc2.bumc.bu.edu/RussianLegalHealthReform/ProjectDocuments/n340.II.I.Bkgd.pdf ).

Together, they play a role in regulating behavior and human resources (e.g., qualifications, quality measures and inspections and public safety) and financial resources, to name a few.

In terms of regulating human resources, they impact such things as the supply of medical practitioners and the quality of practitioners. In one study, for example, Jumpa, Jan, and Mills (2007), investigated the role of regulation in influencing income-generating activities among public sector doctors in Peru. Although dual practice is an activity that is widespread and well-accepted, including in the United States and other countries, with the prime personal motivation is financial, they found that there are also a number of important broad macroeconomic influences on dual practice particularly the oversupply of medical services, the deregulated nature of this market, and the economic crisis throughout the country, which combine to create major hardships for those attempting to make a living through medical practice. There was some support among doctors for tighter regulation. The authors conclude that the findings suggest appropriate policy responses to dual practice involve: (a) tighter controls on the supply of medical practitioners; (b) alleviation of financial pressures brought by macro-economic conditions; and (c) closer regulation of such activities to ensure some degree of collective action over quality and the maintenance of professional reputations. The authors suggest further research into this issue in rural areas to determine the geographical generalizability of these policy responses (http://www.human-resources-health.com/content/5/1/5).

Health care operates through various means of funding at the federal and state levels amongst other avenues of public funding and financial resources. In the Clinton era (1994), for example, a comprehensive national health care reform was voted down (following a report by a commission run by Hillary Clinton). ...