Deck 5: Economics of Health Care Delivery

Question 1

The number of uninsured people in the United States has increased to 46 million. Which of the following is an example of a typical uninsured person?

A) An 82-year-old woman with chronic medical problems
B) A 2-year-old whose mother is on welfare
C) A 50-year-old business man who works for a large corporation
D) A 32-year-old man who works part-time at a small business

Answer 1

A 32-year-old man who works part-time at a small business

Question 2

The distribution of health care is affected largely by the way it is financed in the United States. The barriers to health care access include all of the following except:

A) The lack of insurance
B) Being poor
C) Access to care
D) Chronic illness

Answer 2

Chronic illness

Question 3

Public health economics:

A) Is concerned with the use of resources
B) Focuses on producing, distributing, and consuming goods and services related to public health
C) Is concerned with how scarce resources affect the health care industry
D) Is a growing field of science and practice that involves the management and use of monies to improve the health of populations

Answer 3

Focuses on producing, distributing, and consuming goods and services related to public health

Question 4

Why should nurses be cognizant of microeconomics?

A) Nurses are often the ones to allocate resources to solve a problem.
B) Nurses are often involved in federal policy making.
C) Nurses should know about microeconomics in order to deliver quality patient care.
D) Health care supplies can be very costly and nurses must use them wisely.

Question 5

An example of a macroeconomics issue faced by nurses is:

A) The evaluation of client access to services
B) A health policy that makes the development of a new program possible
C) Informing clients and others of the cost of service
D) The referral of clients to available services

Question 6

Examining the behaviors of individuals and organizations that result from trade-offs in utility and budget constraints of health care is a definition of which of the following terms?

A) Economics
B) Health economics
C) Economic evaluation of health care
D) Microeconomic theory

Question 7

Microeconomic theory is based on supply and demand. Which of the following statements illustrates this?

A) The demand for nurses in public health is low, but the supply is high.
B) When few goods or services are available, the price tends to rise.
C) When supplies are low, nurses must find alternate resources.
D) In lesser-developed countries, the supplies are often delivered by technologically advanced countries.

Question 8

Conducting a class at a public health clinic on breast self-examination to a group of women is an example of which of the following terms?

A) Supply and demand
B) Market
C) Efficiency
D) Effectiveness

Question 9

Medicare and Medicaid:

A) Are available to any citizen who wishes to enroll
B) Are two federal programs that provide insurance to special groups
C) Are private insurance providers
D) Both are funded by the state government

Question 10

The allocation of scarce resources within the health care sector and the focus on resource allocation issues related to producing and distributing health care is a definition of which of the following terms?

A) Economics
B) Health economics
C) Economic evaluation of health care
D) Microeconomic theory

Question 11

Managed care is a term for a variety of health arrangements that integrate financing and the delivery of health care. Two types of managed care are:

A) Medicare
B) Medicaid
C) Medical Savings accounts
D) Health maintenance organizations and preferred provider organizations

Question 12

A difference between HMOs and PPOs is:

A) The HMO is a provider arrangement whereby comprehensive care if provided to members for a fixed, "per member per month," fee.
B) A PPO does not use predetermined rates for services to be delivered to members.
C) HMOs have one model of care delivery.
D) PPOs do not provide financial incentives to encourage members to select PPO providers.

Question 13

The health care system developed in four "phases" from 1800 to today. The first phase was characterized by:

A) The rise in technology
B) Epidemics of infectious disease such as typhoid, influenza, and malaria
C) Physicians and nurses who attained their skills in scientifically-based programs
D) An expansion of hospital clinics and long-term care facilities

Question 14

A person with end-stage kidney failure who is on dialysis no matter what age is eligible for:

A) Medicaid
B) Blue Cross
C) Medicare
D) HMO

Question 15

To move toward improving a population's health, there must be an investment in public health by all levels of government. Which of the following is true?

A) Millions of people in the United States are without health insurance.
B) The poor in the United States are as healthy as persons with middle or higher incomes.
C) Persons with money and/or health insurance are less likely to seek health care.
D) The poor are more likely to receive health care through private agencies.

Question 16

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires industry to adhere to certain safety standards. Which of the following is an example?

A) Offering influenza vaccine at an industrial plant
B) Allowing smoking in designated areas of a factory
C) Encouraging yearly PAP smears for female employees
D) Wearing eye protection when working with a client who is coughing up large amounts of sputum at the health department

Question 17

Services offered at the federal government level include:

A) Family planning
B) Direct care services
C) Policy making
D) Preventing communicable and infectious disease

Question 18

Primary prevention is based on the premise that more health services will result in better health. Which of the following is an example of primary prevention?

A) A smoking cessation program
B) Radiation therapy for lung cancer
C) Care at a long-term care facility
D) Hospice care

Question 19

Efficiency focuses on time or speed in performing tasks and minimizing the waste or unused input during productions. How can nurses promote efficiency?

A) Evaluating how well a program of service achieves what was intended
B) Trying new products provided by sales representatives
C) Using time wisely by delegating non-nursing tasks to unlicensed care providers
D) Setting up a clinic to look aesthetically pleasing to clients

Question 20

The extent to which a health care service meets a stated goal or objective is:

A) Effectiveness
B) Efficiency
C) Microeconomics
D) Production

Question 21

Which of the following is considered the first national health insurance plan in the United States?

A) HMO Act
B) Marine Hospital Service
C) Medicare
D) Medicaid

Question 22

Which of the following statements about the reimbursement of health services for nurses is accurate?

A) Reimbursement for health care services can be directed only to physicians.
B) Nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists are reimbursed for Medicare Part B services.
C) Nursing care is a separate budget item in determining hospital service costs.
D) Nursing care is reimbursed separately from medical care in outpatient settings.

Question 23

The method of paying an organization whereby the third-party payer establishes the amount of money that will be paid for the delivery of a particular service before offering the services to the client is called:

A) Retrospective reimbursement
B) Prospective reimbursement
C) Fee-for-service
D) Capitation

Question 24

The method whereby fees for the delivery of health care services in an organization are set after services are delivered is called:

A) Retrospective reimbursement
B) Prospective reimbursement
C) Fee-for-service
D) Capitation

Question 25

Of the following four major factors, which has the greatest effect on health?

A) Personal behavior/lifestyle
B) Environmental factors
C) Health care system
D) Human biology

Question 26

The economic theory used by nurses who work with aggregates would be:

A) Microeconomic theory, because they are concerned with factors that determine prices and affect resource allocation
B) Microeconomic theory, because of the positive effect of competitiveness on health care costs
C) Macroeconomic theory, because they are concerned with the supply, demand, and costs of services available to their clients
D) Macroeconomic theory, because they are concerned with policy to support programs to improve the health of the community

Question 27

Which of the four developmental stages in the U.S. health care delivery system exhibited a shift away from infectious diseases?

A) First stage (1800 to 1900)
B) Second stage (1900 to 1945)
C) Third stage (1945 to 1984)
D) Fourth stage (1985 to present)

Question 28

Medicare Part B is available to:

A) Disabled persons
B) The elderly
C) The medically indigent
D) Eligible people paying a monthly premium

Question 29

Medicare Part A provides payment for:

A) Laboratory services
B) Outpatient health care
C) Extended care facilities
D) Ambulance transportation

Question 30

Which of the following is used to pay physicians and other practitioners a set amount to provide care to a given client or group of clients for a set period of time and amount of money?

A) Retrospective reimbursement
B) Prospective reimbursement
C) Fee-for-service
D) Capitation

Question 31

A characterization of the fourth developmental stage of the health services delivery framework is:

A) Nurses in the United States being predominantly women
B) The expansion of the number and type of health care facilities
C) Dependence on technology for patient care
D) The discovery and development of pharmacological advances

Question 32

Health care spending outpaces increases in the gross domestic product. Factors that influence health care costs include which of the following. Select all that apply.

A) Technology and intensity
B) Demographics-the aging population
C) Chronic illness
D) HIPAA

Question 33

Medicaid provides financial assistance to pay for medical services for:

A) The elderly
B) Pregnant women
C) The blind
D) Hearing-impaired individuals

Question 34

Federal intervention to protect health insurance coverage for workers and families following a job change or loss is called:

A) Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
B) Medical savings accounts
C) Health maintenance organizations
D) Third-party payers

Question 35

Which of the following statements about the Medicare program is accurate?

A) Part A provides coverage for hospitalization.
B) Part A requires payment of a monthly premium for coverage.
C) Part B provides payment for home health services and extended care facilities.
D) Part B is available without cost to all elderly people who have paid social security taxes.

Question 36

Evaluating a program to prevent teen pregnancy, the gained or increased financial income, the improvements in the community attributable to the program, or costs that would result if the program was not given is an example of which of the following?

A) Cost-effectiveness analysis
B) Cost-benefit analysis
C) Cost-efficiency
D) Economic growth