Microeconomics Homework

Healthcare Documentary Analysis

The objective of this assignment is to expose students to various sides of the healthcare debate by analyzing market-based vs. socialized medicine vs. single payer healthcare systems.

We started the course with thinking about allocation of healthcare resources/scarcity and completed a simple exercise, where students were asked to allocated hours of dialysis machine treatment.

This assignment is asking you to revisit the topic of resource allocation in healthcare on a level of a country and to analyze the pros and cons of resource allocation in healthcare when using 1) first-come-first served and 2) government rationing, or a combination of both vs market-based allocation (willingness to pay).

The movies below look at a number of countries where medicine is socialized (gov. owns the means of production), and single payer (gov. is the sole insurer, but does not own the means of production).

Movie 1: “Wait Till It’s Free” (Free Market Perspective)

Summary: Christian filmmaker Colin Gunn challenges the perceived notion of the free market being responsible for the high prices in healthcare, revealing government intervention as the actual ailment. Wait Till It’s Free examines the history, ramifications, and practical alternatives to government-directed healthcare.

Click here to access and watch: https://oit-video.semo.edu/f/ngray/Wait_Till_Its_Free.mp4

Movie 2: “Sicko” (Socialized Medicine Perspective)

Summary: The movie compares the for-profit, non-universal U.S. system with the non-profit universal health care systems of Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Cuba.

Click here to access and watch: https://oit-video.semo.edu/f/ngray/Sicko.mp4

Movie 3: “Fix It: Healthcare at the Tipping Point,” 2016 (Single Payer Perspective)

Summary: The movie advocates for the single payer model supported by the Physicians for National Healthcare Program.  Students should already by familiar with this documentary from prior assignment.

Click here to access and watch: http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/fix-healthcare-tipping-point/

Watch all three documentaries.

Based on the documentaries, answer the questions below. You can work directly in this file.

1) What is the difference between socialized medicine and single payer system? 10pts

2) What methods of allocation of healthcare are the most prevalent (first-come-first served, rationing, or based on willingness to pay) in countries with socialized medicine and single payer system? 10pts

3) List the countries that use socialized medicine: 10pts

4) In comparison to market-based healthcare system, what are the advantages of socialized medicine? Organize your response using the table below: 10pts

Advantages of Socialized Medicine	Detailed Description of the supporting information (Country, scenario)	Where found in the movie: (Movie, time)

5) In comparison to market-based healthcare system, what are the disadvantages of socialized medicine? 10pts

Disadvantages of Socialized Medicine	Detailed description of the supporting information (Country, scenario)	Where found in the movie: (Movie, time)

6) List the countries that use single payer health care system: 10pts

7) In comparison to market-based healthcare system, what are the advantages of single payer system? 10pts

Advantages of Single Payer	Detailed Description of the supporting information (Country, scenario)	Where found in the movie: (Movie, time)

8) In comparison to market-based healthcare system, what are the disadvantages of the single payer? 10pts

Disadvantages of Single Payer	Detailed Description of the supporting information (Country, scenario)	Where found in the movie: (Movie, time)

Note*** the number of rows in the tables should not be interpreted as an indicator of the number of advantages/disadvantages that you are to identify.

I hope you find this assignment both interesting and rewarding!