Employers and Healthcare Policy - Essay Example

"Employers and Healthcare Policy" is a worthy example of a paper on the health system.
Employers are one of the most important stakeholders in healthcare and, as such, have a critical role to play in healthcare policy. Employers in the healthcare industry include community hospitals and medical centers, extended care facilities, managed care organizations, public health agencies, private practitioners, and home healthcare services (Havighurst, Blumstein & Brennan, 2012). The role of employers in healthcare is significant as they are involved in ensuring their workers have decent working conditions, as well as enhance the quality of care afforded to the patients. They are also active and critical participants when it comes to social health insurance schemes, particularly since it has a direct effect on the quality of care. Employers also support these social healthcare schemes as a way to enhance the corporate social responsibility element (Havighurst, Blumstein & Brennan, 2012).

Healthcare industry employers and the medical establishment are very interested in the formulation of healthcare policy. For example, they could lobby Congress to ensure that government payments to providers of health insurance are not cut (Havighurst, Blumstein & Brennan, 2012). They also seek to influence policy-making in order to regulate drug prices for patients under healthcare programs run by the government. In addition, they could also seek to influence policy on healthcare workers by influencing legislation touching on employee welfare. Health care industry employers wield this influence for various reasons, including cost reduction, which has been the industry’s dominant approach. The employers also seek to ensure that the policy provides value to their business, which means that the health outcomes are matched by the capital invested. Another focus of their influence on policy involves their relationship with employees and their ability to maintain control over employment costs (Havighurst, Blumstein & Brennan, 2012). Finally, the quality of healthcare is an important aspect in the industry and employers always seek to ensure the government provides funds for quality care.