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When Patients Say No (To Save Money): An Essay On The Tectonics Of Health Law, Mark A. Hall
When Patients Say No (To Save Money): An Essay On The Tectonics Of Health Law, Mark A. Hall
Mark A Hall
Our principal task in this essay is to show how the three principle parts of health law -- malpractice, bioethics, and health care finance -- are colliding in ways that will require adjustments in legal doctrine. These parts are like neighboring tectonic plates, either with their own central purposes and basic assumptions. For years each part developed quite independently. Recently, however, public policy increasingly has moved the plates into tension, producing seismic potential that has been largely unnoticed. We demonstrate this through a case study of one tectonic encounter -- a patient who says no to standard-of-care treatment because of …
The Patient Life: Can Consumers Direct Health Care?, Carl E. Schneider, Mark A. Hall
The Patient Life: Can Consumers Direct Health Care?, Carl E. Schneider, Mark A. Hall
Mark A Hall
The ultimate aim of health care policy is good care at good prices. Managed care failed to achieve this goal through influencing providers, so health policy has turned to the only market-based option left: treating patients like consumers. Health insurance and tax policy now pressure patients to spend their own money when they select health plans, providers, and treatments. Expecting patients to choose what they need at the price they want, consumerists believe that market competition will constrain costs while optimizing quality. This classic form of consumerism is today’s health policy watchword. This article evaluates consumerism and the regulatory mechanism …