ABSTRACT
Almost every person has confronted the health care system at some point, often in situations of considerable importance or concern to the individual. This chapter assesses why the special study of health economics makes sense and helps to understand novel aspects of health care and ways to approach the issues. It identifies how health care markets differ from others, particularly understanding the unique role of health insurance. The chapter examines how medical spending has evolved over time, dissecting changes over the years in medical spending. The government intrudes into many markets, but seldom as commonly or extensively as in health care. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) proposed a phase-in of taxation of high-cost insurance plans, a number of reforms of Medicare, and development of a stronger focus on illness prevention in both private insurance and government programs. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book.
