Health human resources in the United States of America

This article reviews the health manpower situation in the United States of America. It notes that there have been changes in how services are provided and financed and, concurrently, in how the professions are practiced and utilized. It indicates that the numbers of graduates in and persons practicing all the health professions have continued to rise during the eighties, although at a slower rate than in the seventies; the pattern of supply follows the same curve. The author further mentions that, in a developed and complex society possessing the largest volume and variety of information in the world, each societal factor produces myriad effects on supply and demand in the health sector. These factors include action by the Federal Government, the influence of health insurance (Medicare), population changes, restrictions on the immigration of professionals, the presence of minorities, and the growing presence of women in the labor force.