The purpose of this week’s discussion assignment is to help us deconstruct the content from your assigned readings, which is – admittedly – quite heavy and dry.  You are asked to help your peers better understand the course material by selecting a category of your choice from the list below and addressing the corresponding questions (note: select one topic and address all questions).

Topic/Category

Medicare

Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs)

Medicare-funded Home Health

Prescription Drug Coverage

Long-Term Services and Supports

The Affordable Care Act

Medicaid

Discussion Questions

Provide a brief historical context for the origins of the program (i.e., How did this program come about? What were the political, social, and cultural forces at play?)

Briefly describe the nature of the program to include: purpose (What type of services does it provide?), eligibility (Who can join?), inclusion and exclusion criteria, types of benefits, methods of funding/financing (Who pays/how much? Who reimburses?)

Address any additional features that are unique to this program (i.e., any relevant information not addressed by the questions here) 

Analyze the benefits and limitations of this program, using the concept of the “triple aim” – cost, quality, and access. In other words, how does this program perform against each one of these three criteria? Is it relatively inexpensive for the type of service provided? Does it reach a great number of people? Does it benefit those who are most in need? Is there evidence that it produces good outcomes?

Describe your suggestions to improve this program. What aspect of its structure or functions would you focus on? Why? How would you measure the effectiveness of your changes?