Health Economics

Catalog description

This course in health economics introduces the tools of microeconomics to analyze various issues in health and healthcare. The first half of the course focuses on patient demand, and the second half focuses on provider supply. Topics covered in the former include the demand for health and healthcare, the demand for insurance, externalities associated with certain health behaviors, cost-effectiveness analyses, and health equity considerations. Topics covered in the latter half of the course include the role of nonprofits, provider agency, provider competition versus concentration, insurer behavior, and the effects of government regulation of insurance.