Deck 22: Public Health, Health Care and Health Insurance

Question 1

A person's health stock is:

A) Potential for health at the start of the year
B) Determined by genetics
C) Determined by lifestyle choices
D) All of the above

Answer 1

D

Question 2

The social cost of equipping a household with a health input includes all of the following except:

A) The cost of manufacturing
B) The cost of transporting and distributing it to the household
C) Externalities from consuming the item
D) All of the above are social costs

Answer 2

C

Question 3

People experience health shocks when they:

A) Have a probability of contracting a disease
B) See a health care provider
C) Experience episodes of illness or injury
D) Die

Answer 3

C

Question 4

If _________ is significant,then even small inconveniences - such as having to walk a kilometer to obtain free immunizations -- may represent _________ barriers to acquisition.

A) Future bias; significant
B) Present bias; insignificant
C) Present bias; significant
D) Health bias; insignificant

Question 5

The traditional response of Governments and NGOs to apparent failures of the health care system was in a ________________fashion,setting up a government hospital or clinic to provide care ________.

A) Supply side; indirectly
B) Supply side; directly
C) Demand side; indirectly
D) Demand side; directly

Question 6

In which countries is healthcare spending as a percentage of GDP the highest?

A) Low and middle income countries
B) High income countries
C) Neither spend a significant amount on healthcare when compared to the GDP
D) All groups spend about the same on healthcare

Question 7

Which of the following statistics are true of developing countries health care systems?

A) Average newborns in high income countries can expect to live 21 years longer than in low and income countries
B) Infants in low income countries are 14 times more likely to die during their first year
C) Expectant mothers are 39 times more likely to die before or during delivery in low income countries
D) All of the above

Question 8

Which of the following is a proximate objective of health policy makers?

A) Reduce the physical burden households experience when health shocks strike
B) Reduce the mental burden households experience when health shocks strike
C) Reduce the risk of health shocks
D) All of the above

Question 9

Why would private retailers under-invest in the dissemination of information about the potential health benefits?

A) They would have to pay the full private cost of producing
B) It would raise the demand for their competitors goods as well
C) They would receive the full benefit from the sale
D) All of the above

Question 10

When a household purchases health insurance they pay a _____________ in exchange for the promise of financial assistance in paying health care bills called _________.

A) Premium; pay-out
B) User fee; indemnities
C) User fee; premium
D) Premium; indemnities

Question 11

Empirical experiments have shown that when considering the costs and benefits of charging for bed nets the size of the costs of charging a fee are __________ and the benefits are ________

A) Large; large
B) Small; small
C) Large; small
D) Small; large

Question 12

Some marketers of health inputs believe that health input use decisions are subject to a sunk cost effect,which renders households ________ to use a health input if they have paid ______ to acquire it.?

A) More likely; more
B) Less likely; less
C) Less likely; more
D) More likely; less

Question 13

The burden of a disease is best measured by:

A) Death rate
B) Disability Adjusted Life Years lost
C) Infant mortality
D) Life expectancy

Question 14

If an individual faces a 3% chance of requiring a surgery that costs $10,000 then a risk-averse person would be willing to pay ____________ per year for health insurance that would cover the cost of the surgery if the shock hits.

A) More than $300.
B) $30
C) $300
D) $3,000

Question 15

All of the following are reasons why some development economists argue it would be better to charge a fee for treated bed nets rather than distributing them for free except:.

A) Charging a fee covers some cost and allows them to distribute more nets
B) Prevent waste from distributing a net to someone who won't use them
C) Will help in informing households of the benefits
D) Sunk cost effect

Question 16

The tradition response of governments and NGOs to health care systems failures was to respond in a supply side fashion.This approach often failed because:

A) The government couldn't afford to supply the needed subsidies
B) The governments couldn't afford to supply the needed funds to provide basic health services
C) The government couldn't afford to increase taxes
D) The government the subsidies to households weren't enough to cover even basic care

Question 17

Insurance companies engage in _______________ when they take on liability for the cost of any necessary health care for many people,only some of whom will in fact be struck by health shocks in a given year

A) Demand side policies
B) Economies of scope
C) Economies of scale
D) Risk pooling

Question 18

The local climate,pollution levels,prevalence of communicable disease and any other factors outside her control that influence the likelihood of illness or injury are called:

A) Health inputs
B) Health environment
C) Health behavior
D) Health shock

Question 19

A household's willingness to pay for health inputs depends on all of the following except:

A) Externalities
B) Lack of knowledge
C) Liquidity constraints
D) All of the above can affect the willingness to pay

Question 20

In many experimental contexts,households exhibit ___________,or a tendency to value goods and services ________ when asked to give them up (e.g.when asked to sell them)than when offered an opportunity to acquire them (e.g.through purchase).?

A) Loss aversion; more
B) Loss aversion; less
C) Status quo aversion; more
D) Status quo aversion; less

Question 21

Health care is provided efficiently when a given array of services is provided ____________,and when providers expend any effort or resources on a patient's care for which the likely social benefits _______ the social costs.

A) At the lowest cost per person; equal
B) To the most people; equal
C) Using the fewest resources; outweigh
D) At the lowest cost; outweigh

Question 22

If each of 2,000 individuals face a 3% chance of requiring a surgery that costs $40,000 then an insurance company would expect to pay for ____________ surgeries (on average)per year that would cost __________,and would charge premiums of__________.

A) 100; $4,000,000; $2,000
B) 30; $1,200,000; $600
C) 60; $2,400,000; $1,200
D) 200;$8,000,000; $4,000

Question 23

What proximate objectives to health policy makers pursue to help pursue the ultimate goals of reducing the physical mental and financial burden of health shock and to reduce households' vulnerability to the burdens that future health shocks might bring?

Question 24

In __________,program employees manage and provide both health insurance and health care services.Such programs provide subsidies for health insurance and health care in _________ fashion,through the direct provision of low-cost health care.

A) Fully integrated programs; supply-side
B) Partially integrated programs; demand -side
C) Decentralized programs; supply-side
D) Healthcare management programs; demand-side

Question 25

How is the DALYs lost to a disease in a given year calculated?

Question 26

When governments provide health insurance rather than providing the heakth services directly it represent a shift from __________ to ____________.

A) Supply side; demand side
B) Demand side; Supply side
C) Inefficiency; efficiency
D) Efficiency; inefficiency

Question 27

Within developing countries,why is ill health is a greater burden for the poor than the non-poor?

Question 28

All of the following are reason why markets are unlikely to yield high quality and efficient health care in the absence of intervention except:

A) There is an asymmetric information problem where households know more about their situation than healthcare providers
B) Some providers may seek to raise profits by subscribing unnecessary tests
C) Financial markets may limit health care providers ability to manage stocks of medicines and supplies
D) Households' lack of knowledge regarding when to seek care may diminish efficiency