UCL - Economics and health care policies

[ECON2354]

[30h] 5 credits

Teacher(s): Marie-Christine Closon

Language: French

Level: Second

Aims
Main themes
Content and teaching methods
Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Aims

By the end of the lectures the students should master the principles of health economics and to be capable to apply these principles to concrete cases.

Main themes

- to provide to the students the basic elements of the organization and financing of the health care sector in Belgium today and its recent developments;
- to analyse the regulatory role of the State in this sector and its justification (intrinsic characteristics of health care, etc.);
- to identify the factors underpinning the utilization of the health services, from the angle of both supply and demand;
- to introduce the students to an analysis of medical decisions and of cost-effectiveness methods;
to evaluate the various ways of regulating the sector from the point of view of economic efficiency (quality of care, cost control, etc.) and equitable access to health care services. It consists of the analysis of specific health care policies that aren't treated within the course "methods for the evaluation of public policies".

Content and teaching methods

The course deals with the following questions:
1. Health care, an asset unlike any other: implications for the organization, financing and regulation of the sector;
2. typology and comparative analysis of various health systems;
3. organization and financing of health care in Belgium;
4. uncertainties, the health insurance market and the role of the authorities;
5. factors underpinning the population's health including the environment, life style, working conditions and socio-economic status;
6. introduction to an analysis of medical decisions and assessment of cost-effectiveness and health pro-grammes;
7. utilization of health care: the influence of demand and control instruments, supply and control instru-ments (for instance, the remuneration of health care workers);
8. hospitals: behavioural models, methods of financing and control, and their impact on hospital perform-ance;
9. alternative regulatory methods and experiences in other countries: the HMO in the United States,
the reformed NHS in Great Britain, Dekker Plan in the Netherlands.
The course functions as a series of seminars.

Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Written or oral examination

References distributed at the start of the lectures.