The U.S. Healthcare System: A Health Policy Primer for Medical School Applicants

hello! I’m Sabrina, an incoming first year medical student at the University of Chicago and a health policy researcher (concentrating on health equity and delivery system reform.)

questions about the American healthcare system come up pretty often during medical school interviews, and I know it can be intimidating to learn about these topics for the first time. this video provides a broad overview of U.S. health policy -- applicable to premeds and non-premeds alike! I define some terms and high level concepts, review a few ongoing debates and issues in our healthcare system, and briefly touch upon the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare in America.

topics covered:
1:10 basic concepts & definitions
1:14 health care payers, premiums, copays, and deductibles
2:28 employer-sponsored health insurance and health insurance sources
3:44 medicare and medicaid
5:04 ongoing debates and issues in the U.S. healthcare system
5:12 healthcare reform and expanding insurance coverage
6:36 the affordable care act, medicare-for-all, and the public option
8:18 health care costs
8:38 price negotiation
9:48 fee-for-service reimbursement vs. value-based payment
11:10 health inequities and disparities
12:18 the impact of COVID-19 on healthcare policy

sources mentioned:
3:10 breakdown of health insurance sources -- https://www.census.gov/library/public...
6:05 impact of medicaid expansion on mortality -- https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056...
8:25 u.s. healthcare spending and breakdown -- https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publ...
9:27 private insurance vs. medicare on price negotiation -- https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-br...
11:24 health equity and justice from 1993-2017 -- https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama... and https://www.npr.org/sections/health-s...

further resources:
rosenthal's "an american sickness" -- https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/bo...
history of medicare and medicaid -- https://www.vox.com/videos/2017/8/4/1...
summary of the affordable care act -- https://www.kff.org/health-reform/fac...
the 2020 democrats' health insurance plans -- https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politi...
robert wood johnson's value-based payment resources -- https://www.rwjf.org/en/library/colle...
maryland's global budget program -- https://khn.org/news/paying-hospitals...
COVID-19 and the need for healthcare reform -- https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056...