HSH763 - Financing Health Care

Unit details

Note: You are seeing the 2020 view of this unit information. These details may no longer be current. [Go to the current version]
Year:

2020 unit information

Important Update:

Classes and seminars in Trimester 2/Semester 2, 2020 will be online. Physical distancing for coronavirus (COVID-19) will affect delivery of other learning experiences in this unit. Please check your unit sites for announcements and updates one week prior to the start of your trimester or semester.

Last updated: 2 June 2020

Enrolment modes:Trimester 2: Burwood (Melbourne), Online
Credit point(s):1
EFTSL value:0.125
Unit Chair:Trimester 2: Jenny Watts
Prerequisite:

HSH717 or MPE781

Corequisite:

Nil

Incompatible with:

Nil

Typical study commitment:

Students will on average spend 150 hours over the teaching period undertaking the teaching, learning and assessment activities for this unit.

Scheduled learning activities - campus:

1 x 2 hour seminar each week

Scheduled learning activities - cloud:

9 x 2 hours weekly class (recording provided). All students will participate in group activities facilitated through the online discussion board (1 hour per week over 11 weeks).

Content

How societies pay for health care and how many resources are devoted to health and health care can affect individual access to health care; and impact on both health inequalities and population health. As a policy instrument, health financing is about raising sufficient funds in a fair and equitable way; pooling financial resources across population groups to minimise the impact of illness; and creating a legislative framework to support an equitable and efficient use of public funds. This subject will explore alternative mechanisms for financing health care, including collecting revenue, pooling funds, purchasing services from providers and the role of the prevailing policy framework.

Broadly there are two approaches to health care financing: (i) government financed systems and (ii) market-based systems. However in contemporary health systems this distinction is blurred with market-based incentives influencing predominantly government financed healthcare; output-based funding for hospitals and pay-for-performance (P4P) models are examples of this. Insurance, whether universal or private, provides a further layer of complexity.

Any payment system is affected by how the incentives underlying payment, including the existence of insurance, influence individual behaviour; and in health care funding incentives influence the behaviour of both consumers and providers. We will analyse the strengths and weaknesses of different financing and policy options from an economic perspective. The subject will draw on both Australian and international examples of healthcare financing policy.

 

These are the Learning Outcomes (ULO) for this unit
At the completion of this Unit, successful students can:

Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes

ULO1

Explain the differences between the two broad approaches to financing health care – market-based and government financed systems.

GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities
GLO2: Communication
GLO3: Digital literacy
GLO4: Critical thinking
GLO5: Problem solving
GLO6: Self-management
GLO7: Teamwork
GLO8: Global citizenship

ULO2

Critically assess the alternative options for paying for health services with respect to incentives on providers and consumers, equity and access, efficiency and sustainability.

GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities
GLO2: Communication
GLO3: Digital literacy
GLO4: Critical thinking
GLO5: Problem solving
GLO6: Self-management
GLO7: Teamwork
GLO8: Global citizenship

ULO3

Analyse the alternative methods of raising revenue for health care, including taxation, the role of private contributions and insurance.

GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities
GLO2: Communication
GLO3: Digital literacy
GLO4: Critical thinking
GLO5: Problem solving
GLO6: Self-management
GLO7: Teamwork
GLO8: Global citizenship

ULO4

Discuss the role of health insurance, including decisions about whom to cover, what services to cover, and how much of the cost of a service to cover.

GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities
GLO2: Communication
GLO3: Digital literacy
GLO5: Problem solving
GLO6: Self-management
GLO8: Global citizenship

ULO5

Evaluate the impact of price on the demand and supply of healthcare services.

GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities
GLO2: Communication
GLO3: Digital literacy
GLO4: Critical thinking
GLO5: Problem solving
GLO6: Self-management
GLO8: Global citizenship

Assessment

Trimester 2:
Assessment Description Student output Grading and weighting
(% total mark for unit)
Indicative due week
Assessment 1: Written exercises posted to all students enrolled in the unit via the CloudDeakin discussion board  5 exercises, approximately 500 words each 50%
  • Approximately 1 exercise very 2 weeks
Assessment 2: Essay 2,500 words 50%
  • End of trimester

The assessment due weeks provided may change. The Unit Chair will clarify the exact assessment requirements, including the due date, at the start of the teaching period.

Learning Resource

The texts and reading list for the unit can be found on the University Library via the link below: HSH763 Note: Select the relevant trimester reading list. Please note that a future teaching period's reading list may not be available until a month prior to the start of that teaching period so you may wish to use the relevant trimester's prior year reading list as a guide only.

Unit Fee Information

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