Bernanke’s View Of Health Care On Health Wonk Review
June 26th, 2008
by
Jane Hiebert-White
|
Today’s edition of the Health Wonk Review features a post on Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s economic assessment of health care presented at last week’s Senate Finance Committee Health Reform Summit. While rising U.S. health care costs pose a strain on the economy, there are positive aspects of new health care technology, says Bernanke:
“Although the high cost of health care is a frequently heard complaint, it is important to note that a substantial portion of the cost increases that we have seen in recent decades reflects improvements in both the quality and quantity of care delivered rather than higher costs of delivering a given level of care. Notably, new technologies, despite greatly adding to cost in many cases, have also yielded significant benefits in the form of better health. People put great value on their health, and it is not surprising that, as our society becomes wealthier, we would choose to spend more on health-care services. Indeed, although quantifying the economic value of improved health and greater expected longevity is difficult, most researchers who have undertaken an exercise of this type find that, on average, the health benefits of new technologies and other advances have significantly exceed the economic costs.”
Jaan Sidorov of Disease Care Management Blog is this week’s host of the Health Wonk Review, the biweekly round-up of the best of health policy blogging.
