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Related Experiment Videos

Rationing health care: what it is, what it is not, and why we cannot avoid it.

U E Reinhardt1

  • 1Princeton University, USA.

The Baxter Health Policy Review
|January 1, 1996
PubMed
Summary

Economists define health care rationing as any limit on service distribution, including price barriers or non-price methods like queues. Understanding this definition clarifies policy debates and reveals how efficient systems may withhold services, potentially creating a tiered healthcare structure.

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Area of Science:

  • Health Economics
  • Health Policy Analysis
  • Resource Allocation

Background:

  • The term "rationing" is central yet misunderstood in national health policy debates.
  • Economists define rationing broadly, encompassing all limits on scarce resource distribution.
  • Distinguishing between "price rationing" and "non-price rationing" is crucial for clarity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To clarify the definition of rationing as used in economics for health policy discussions.
  • To examine the economic argument that efficient healthcare systems may necessitate rationing.
  • To analyze the potential impact of the U.S. tort system on managed competition and rationing.
  • To predict future trends in healthcare rationing within the U.S. system.

Main Methods:

Related Experiment Videos

  • Review of economic definitions and principles of rationing.
  • Analysis of the relationship between economic efficiency and healthcare service withholding.
  • Examination of the U.S. individualist tradition and its influence on healthcare policy.
  • Interpretation of recent congressional debates on health care reform and their implications.

    • Main Results:

    • Economists define rationing as any limit on distribution, including price and non-price methods.
    • Economically efficient systems may ration services to enhance overall quality and efficiency.
    • The U.S. tort system may impede managed competition's goals.
    • Recent health reforms may have sanctioned a three-tiered healthcare system with tiered rationing.

    Conclusions:

    • Adopting the economic definition of rationing can significantly clarify health policy debates.
    • Managed competition may lead to rationing, influenced by the U.S. legal and cultural context.
    • The U.S. healthcare system may institutionalize a tiered rationing structure, particularly in lower tiers.