TRANSITIONS FROM PRIVATE TO PUBLIC HEALTH INSURANCE
1. Briefly summarize the article.
2. Define and discuss the concept of "crowd out." Why was this a central issue with state children's health insurance program?
3. What is the concept of private to public transition? How does it impact children's insurance?
4. What were the results of the study as it relates to children's insurance?
5. Do you agree with what the authors found? Why or why not?
TRANSITIONS FROM PRIVATE TO PUBLIC HEALTH INSURANCE
The article Who transitions from private to public health insurance?: Lessons from expansions of the State Children's Health Insurance Program written by Schaefer, H. L., Grogan, C. M., PhD., & Pollack, H. A., in the 2011, is an article that concentrates in the transition of children from private health insurance services to public insurance service. It gives a brief definition of the reason as to this children transit. It's an article not rather based on speculation or mere observation but from surveys done by professionals, the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), who did the survey for a period of up to 15 years, (Shaefer, 2011).
The article tries to narrow down to finding out the reason behind the massive transition, which according to the research done, the level of income or rather the economic worth of a family is mainly the reason behind the transition as well as the change in nature and services at public health services. It finally ends with a personal view to the private sector of what they should consider doing in order to get back on track and engage I public programs.
Schaefer, the writer of the article thinks one of the reason behind the transitions is "crowding out". Crowding out can be said to be a situation where personal consumption of goods and services and investments by a business, in this case by the private health sectors, are reduced due to increases in government spending and deficit financing which in return ends up sucking up available financial resources hence raising interest rates in the business, (Grimsley, 2003).
This is a central issue of concern to the state children's health insurance program because it influences them positively and partly negatively. One effect of crowding out is that it creates an expansionary fiscal policy where the government usually uses financial resources that are now longer available for use by other individuals and businesses in the market. It hence funds its spending by raising revenue through taxation, this hence means extorting several dollars off the pockets of other individuals and businesses hence affect private investment decisions which as a result makes them to increase the price for their services.
On the other hand this same crowding out effect may to some extent lead to lesser income in the economy which becomes quick a pain to the low income citizen, since their income becomes even lesser hence making it hard for them to get access to private services. This hence threatens the children of this low incomers from accessing private health service insurances due to lack of the necessary funds to do so while on the other hand is a benefit to those who seek public health insurance services. This is because, due to the government increase in revenue, it acquires enough money to invest in the health insurance hence making it cheaper than the health sector to provide the insurance cover services, (Yohe, 1970).
The concept of transitions from private to public health care coverage by children can at some point be see to bring important social benefits to vulnerable families. This means that instead of this transition being a net societal cost, it may provide an important social benefit to families with low incomes and whose children are vulnerable to sicknesses and are uninsured. The introduction of SCHIP in 1997 enabled low and moderate income teens up to age 19 to gain access to public health insurance, (Tyson, 1992).
Later policies were even more updated to allow young adults between the ages of 19 and 24 to remain covered under their parents' health insurance, such are cases that are rare or even impossible in the private health care insurance programs since they are working on a tax active environment unlike the public insurance programs. Hence, this transition from the private health insurance programs to public is to some extent quit important to those with low income since health is quit a precious unit in one's life that require maximum attention, (Riley, 2009).
Based on the results found from the study, most children who transit are truly said to come from families whose income is not commendable as much. Hence it becomes hard for them to cater for their medical insurance bills in the private health insurance proms hence seek refuge in the public sector where the same service are cheap and adequately offered.
The researcher found out that most Public programs provide at most protection to uninsured parties and those whose children are in poor health hence the reason much behind the transition.
Based on a personal opinion, I think I agree with the author's research and findings. It all evident from the expensive price on the private bill of insurance and decline in health care to lack of investment unlike in the public sector where the bills are cheap and the health care is rising as days go by due to government investment in the healthcare programs of the public sector and making available services not available in the private insurance programs. And hence the private sectors need to do something, strike some negotiations with the government to be included in some of this programs that allow them to enjoy some privileges which hence reflect back to their patients.