Economics of Enterprise Answers

Why is a hospital bill so hard to understand? Why doesn’t a hospital just post a list of prices like most businesses?

The number of patients and the number of days each patient spends in the hospital has gone down. Why have hospital costs continued to increase faster than other health care costs?

Has regulation cut costs or cut competition?

Will computers and other new technology improve efficiency and hence reduce costs, or will they improve quality and hence raise costs?

Do certificate-of-need (CON) rules reduce costs or reduce access?

How can Medicaid payments create an excess and a shortage of patients at the same time?

Have government payments and regulations raised or lowered the quality of care?

How can substituting nursing homes for hospitals increase the total cost of care if the cost per day is lower at nursing homes?

Who provides most long-term care for the disabled elderly? Who is the largest insurer?

As people live longer, does that mean that they are healthier and thus spend less on medical care, or more disabled and spend more?