Good Example Of Research Paper On Health Care Policy

The state has the power and authority to protect health, safety, morals and the welfare of the population. The healthcare system does not consist of a fixed well-defined set of structure and roles; the structure changes from time to time based on many factors. The factors are majorly influenced by the government, social structure, cost, and the expectations of the people from the society and the definition of health care. The private and the public sector have influence on the policies in relation to healthcare. The public system has an influence on the healthcare system through the three branches of government, the executive, judiciary, and the legislature.
The doctrine of separation of powers is essential to public health. This is because each branch of government has unique powers in authority to interpret, enforce or create policies in relation to health policy. The legislature has the role of making policies and passing laws for the whole country. The legislative branch acts as a forum for debating different issues in relation to health. Additionally, the branch does extensive health studies before passing different policies. The function of the legislative branch is to create the health policies and allocate the necessary resources in to ensure the policy comes into effect. However, sometimes the legislature is seen to be ill-equipped to make public health decisions that are complex. The legislature also has the power, as authorized by the constitution to raise funds, impose taxes and raise monies for other branches of judiciary and executive (Kronenfeld 1997, p 55).
The legislature determines programs and services that will get funding from the federal government. An excellent example is subsidizing the education given to the health care workers, this determines the number and the type of workers. Accordingly, reimbursement laws govern who gets paid for a particular type of services, and the categories of services to be performed by different workers are determined by licensing laws. The laws passed by the legislature also determines what drugs and substances can be used and the devices.
The judiciary has the function of interpreting these laws while the Executive oversees implementation of different health programs while creating further regulations to interpret laws. The political parties also have a say in regards to the freely debate and engage in issues. Democracy supports the ability of citizens and individuals to be informed and participate in matters of policy solutions, issues, and politics. The constitution, like the U.S Constitution, supports engagement of everyone without fear of relation. Political parties provide a structure where all voices are heard and where democracy is practiced. All these interested groups may have conflicting interests or opinions about various areas of interest in the healthcare system. When these conflicts arise, the constitution and the laws of the United States will be the supreme law of the land. (Porshe 2012, p 62).
In practice, the power of the federal government and the state intersects in numerous areas, particularly areas of concern, like the public health. Federalism has the function of determining which government organs respond to health threats. Often, the state, federal governments, and local governments exercise their public, health powers concurrently. Conflicts may occur on different levels of government; therefore, federal laws are likely to preempt state laws.
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References

Porche, D. J. (2012). Health policy: Application for nurses and other healthcare professionals. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Kronenfeld, J. J. (1997). The changing federal role in US health care policy. Westport, Conn. [u.a.: Praeger.