Institute:Office of National Coordinator (ONC) Workforce Training Curriculum
Component:Introduction to Health Care and Public Health in the U.S.
Unit:Financing Health Care - Part 2
Lecture:Methods of Controlling Rising Medical Costs
Slide content:Fixing a Broken System? Limit resource availability Rationing Incentives to change utilization Increase patient cost Wellness and prevention Increase in efficiency Health Information Technology (HIT) Evidence-based medicine (EBM) Clinical Practice Guidelines 10
Slide notes:Health care costs are increasing for a myriad of reasons. What methods can be used to increase access to care, improve quality, and control costs? Who becomes responsible for keeping costs under control the patient, the physician, the hospital, the third-party payor, or the employer? How does one determine the value of new technology in improving patient outcomes? How do we slow or avoid the development of chronic disease in an aging population? There are no easy answers to these questions. One potential cost control method includes limiting the available resources, or rationing. Another method involves decreasing utilization patterns by increasing the patient share of the costs, or by investing in wellness and prevention. Both rationing and increasing the patient share of costs raises ethical questions about care for the disadvantaged, the potential for creating a two-tiered health care delivery system, and the appropriate utilization of services by untrained consumers. In addition, while wellness and prevention programs may result in fewer complications and longer periods of health, the additional consumption of health resources needed in wellness and prevention programs may offset potential savings. Perhaps the best method of controlling costs is to increase the efficiency of health care delivery using health information technology, evidence-based medicine, and clinical practice guidelines. Additional savings may be achieved through new models of health care delivery and tort reform. Health IT Workforce Curriculum Version 4.0 10