Introduction to Health Policy
Harvard Medical School
Instructors: Haiden A.Huskamp, PhD; Barbara J. McNeil, MD, PhD

Physicians play a critical role in shaping the US health care system. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the key features of the current health care delivery and financing system and to analytic concepts needed to evaluate current health policy issues. This course will:

• introduce students to the US health care system;

• cover political, economic, and insurance concepts central to health policy debates;

• compare the US system with those of other developed nations;

• provide students with practice in critically evaluating policy problems.

Faculty from throughout Harvard University will lead discussions on specific health care topics, including recent changes in the health care market, physician payment arrangements, factors affecting quality of care, comparative health care systems, and approaches to expanding insurance coverage.