Introducing Health Care Policy and Economics

Health system reform didn't begin with the Affordable Care Act signed into law in 2010. It has a long, complicated history and a complex future. Understanding health policy and economics and the links between the two requires the following: 1) defining the core principles of the formation and implementation of health policy in the United States; 2) exploring the economic aspects of the U.S. health care system; 3) looking at how health care professionals, health plans, and patients affect health care spending; and 4) identifying central themes of health care reform in the U.S. over the last century.