Healthcare Policy and Economics

Catalog description

This undergraduate-level course focuses on how healthcare policies, financial issues, regulations, legislative actions, businesses, healthcare providers, and other stakeholders influence healthcare in the United States and the world. Students will develop a solid understanding of the broader context of healthcare, including how patient care services are organized and financed, and how reimbursement is structured. Students will learn how healthcare policy is both developed and changed, and how that process can be influenced by healthcare professionals as well as lay and special advocacy groups. Students will be encouraged to participate in the political process and advocate for patients, families, communities, their profession, and changes in the healthcare system as needed. Advocacy for vulnerable populations with the goal of promoting social justice is discussed.