Demand In Health Care Essay

What is demand? How does demand intertwine into the field of health care? It seems that this would be a very up front and easy question to answer, however, there are many aspects of demand that must be understood. Several articles have been written about demand in health care and how the outcomes are interpreted. In this essay we will define demand, elasticity and how it relates to demand, and what can impact the slope of demand.
Demand is defined as “Reflects the choices made by consumers over the consumption of specific goods. In almost all cases we would expect that if a price goes up, all else being equal, the quantity of the demanded for a good goes down” (Guinness & Wiseman, 2011, p. 37). In daily life this seems like an easy concept

Elasticity of demand is defined as “the ratio that represents how a fixed percentage change in the price of a good leads to a change in the quantity demanded, measured as a percentage change from the original quantity” (Bhattacharya et al., 2014, p. 19). In health care demand is inelastic. The inelasticity is due to the many variables of health care. One thought is that with health care there are few options to turn to when one is ill. Therefore, regardless of price one would still seek out health care. When looking at general consumer goods, such as the Bounty paper towels, price does effect the quantity demand. However, in health care when one is having an emergency or health event, price will not determine whether or not health care is

An example of elastic would be on the pharmaceutical end. Although a physician may prescribe a certain type of medication or treatment, the consumer might seek out a less expensive product or alternative method to reach the goal of what the physician has ordered. Alternative methods could be anything from change in diet, to trying vitamins or supplements, or a change in life style. This is best illustrated in a patient with diabetes. A patient seeks out health care from a physician due to symptoms and is diagnosed with diabetes. The physician wants the patient to start on a regimen of metformin to help reduce blood glucose levels. When the patient goes to the pharmacy to fill the prescription, they find that the cost or copay of the medication is more than they are willing to pay. The patient, in response to the cost, opts to change life style and diet to manage their blood glucose rather than take the advice of the physician and take the medication. Typically, when you hear the word demand you think of another word – supply. Supply is relative to this discussion because it can also have effects on health care. The supply curve can be explained