Aaron YelowitzApplied economist · University of Kentucky
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Historical

ECO 410 · Spring 2016

Health Economics

Historical syllabus; policies and dates reflect this term.

Archived syllabus. Policies, dates, assignments, and readings reflect Spring 2016.

Course information

Economics 410-001: Health Economics University of Kentucky Spring Semester 2016

Lectures TR, 9:30-10:45 am, B&E 233

Relevant info on me Professor Aaron Yelowitz Office: 223B Business & Economics Building Office hours: Tuesdays & Thursdays, from 11:00-12:00, and by appointment. Email: aaron@uky.edu

My background: I am an associate professor in the economics department; I have been at UK since 2001. Before I joined UK, I was an assistant professor in the economics department at UCLA, from 1994 to 2001. I received my Ph.D. in economics from MIT in 1994, and my B.A. from UC Santa Barbara in 1990. My research interests have focused on low-income households – especially concerning the housing and health insurance decisions that these groups are faced with.

Enrolling in this Class

If you want to enroll in this class, you need to get on the wait-list. The room capacity greatly limits the ability for me to allow additional students into the course.

Course Description

This course examines the organization, financing, and management of the U.S. health care system and programs, and emphasizes contemporary health policy concerns. By the end of the semester, students should have the institutional knowledge and analytic tools needed to think about current public policy debates about health and medical care. Specifically,

  • Be familiar with basic facts about the U.S. health care system
  • Be familiar with the major economic issues in health care policy
  • Have experience using economic policy analysis to evaluate public policy issues in health care

Prerequisites

Economics 202 or equivalent.

Textbook / On-line class notes

Charles E. Phelps, Health Economics, 5th edition (Prentice Hall, 2012, ISBN 13: 978-0132948531). There will also be assigned readings from academic papers, most of which are freely available from National Bureau of Economic Research (www.nber.org) or JSTOR (www.jstor.org). Both NBER’s web site and JSTOR’s web site have downloadable papers if accessed from computers in the B&E building, and possibly elsewhere. For those who have difficulty, I will be happy to assist you.

Communication with Students

I will email relevant course materials to you, including PowerPoint slides, problem sets, and lecture notes. In addition, I will sometimes send announcements by email. Please make sure to check your email for my announcements.

Preparing for Class

We will generally follow the order of topics on the syllabus. The best way of preparing for the class is to read the textbook chapters ahead of time, as well as any supplemental materials. In terms of the academic studies, you should attempt to read through them ahead of time, but there is no expectation that all parts of the study will be completely understandable to you. We will hit the highlights of those academic studies in class.

Studying for the Exams

The exams for this semester will generally be based on the textbook and class lecture. During the course of the semester, I will point out relevant questions in the back of the chapters, and will also create additional questions for you to work on. I will try to distribute these questions when we start on a new chapter in the textbook.

Grading

  1. The FINAL is on Monday, May 2, 2016, at 1:00 PM. It will count for 50% of your grade. It lasts 120 minutes. It will be in this room. A review session will be conducted on April 28.
  2. You will be given one MIDTERM, in class, on Tuesday, March 8, 2016. It will count for 35% of your grade. It lasts 75 minutes. It will be in this room. A review session will be conducted on March 3, and the exam will be passed back on March 10.
  3. At various times during the semester, unannounced POP QUIZZES will be given. These quizzes are worth 15% of your grade, and each quiz will take 15 minutes of class time. There will be five quizzes in total, each worth 3 points. They will generally be given at the beginning of class, so do not be late. These quizzes serve as valuable preparation for the midterm and final, and also ensure that you are keeping up with the course material.
  4. At the discretion of the instructor, there may be extra credit assignments. Such assignments will be communicated in class, with specifics.

Absences

It is important you show up for class, especially since you will not know if a pop quiz will be given. If you are absent, you will receive zero credit for any assignment unless the absence is excused. You must provide satisfactory documentation for any absence; such documentation will be verified. A “Tier 2” or “Tier 3” document provided by UHS is appropriate verification for an excused absence for illness; such a doctor’s visit (and verification) should fall within 24 hours of the absence. Excused absences are for serious illness, illness or death of family member, university related trips, major religious holidays or other circumstances that the instructor finds to be reasonable cause for nonattendance. You can understand more about absences at: http://www.uky.edu/Ombud/policies.php. If you have any questions on whether an absence will be excused, please contact me as soon as possible. Any anticipated absences should be communicated, in writing (via email) as soon as they are known. Please note that many absences are unexcused, even if you think they are for a “good” reason! For example, scheduling job interviews during class time does not count as an excused absence.

Grading Policy

Grades will be based on the midterm exam, final exam, pop quizzes (and possibly extra credit) only. Procedure for re-evaluation of disputed exam scores: Requests must be submitted in writing with an explanation of the error the student believes has been made. Written requests and test sheet must be submitted within one week of the date on which the exams are returned. All tests submitted for re-evaluation will be entirely re-graded.

University Holidays / Cancelled Classes

According to the university calendar, there will be no class on March 15, 2016 or March 17, 2016 due to Spring Vacation. In addition, class will be cancelled on April 5, 2016.

Course outline and readings

I. Introduction and Background

A. Phelps, Chapters 1 & 2

  • Why Health Economics?
  • Utility and Health

II. Medical Care and Health

A. Phelps, Chapters 3, 4, & 5

  • The Transformation of Medical Care to Health
  • The Demand for Medical Care: Conceptual Framework
  • Empirical Studies of Medical Care Demand and Applications

B. Supplemental Readings

  • Reading 1: Manning, et al., 1987. “Health Insurance and the Demand for Medical Care: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment,” The American Economic Review, 77(3): 251-277.
  • Reading 2: Aron-Dine, et al., 2013. “The RAND Health Insurance Experiment, Three Decades Later,” Journal of Economic Perspectives, 27(1): 197-222.

III. Physician Behavior, Malpractice and Defensive Medicine

A. Phelps, Chapters 6, 7, & 13

  • The Physician and the Physician-Firm
  • Physicians in the Marketplace
  • Medical Malpractice

B. Supplemental Readings

  • Reading 3: Kessler, D. and and M. McClellan, 1996. “Do Doctors Practice Defensive Medicine?” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 111(2): 353-390.

IV. Health Insurance, Managed Care & Government Programs

A. Phelps, Chapters 10, 11, & 12

  • The Demand for Health Insurance
  • Health Insurance Supply and Managed Care
  • Government Provision of Health Insurance

B. Supplemental Readings

  • Reading 4: Marton, J., A. Yelowitz, and J. Talbert, 2014. “A Tale of Two Cities? Heterogeneous Impact of Medicaid Managed Care in Kentucky,” Journal of Health Economics, 36(1): 47-68.
  • Reading 5: Yelowitz, A., 1995. “The Medicaid Notch, Labor Supply, and Welfare Participation: Evidence from Eligibility Expansions,” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 110(4): 909-939.