In dieser Arbeit sollen die Konsequenzen einer unhinterfragten Konsolidierungspolitik untersucht werden. Dazu wird ein einfaches Modell ,optimaler öffentlicher Verschuldung' konstruiert, das sowohl als Ausgangspunkt für die Erklärung der Konsolidierungsbehühungen dient, als auch mögliche...

Konsolidierung heißt das finanzpolitische Gebot der Stunde. Obwohl sich dies eigentlich auf den Schuldenstand der öffentlichen Gebietskörperschaften beziehen sollte, wird landläufig die Instrumentenvariable Defizitquote zum Ziel der Konsolidierung (,Null-Defizit') erklärt. Zahlreiche...

Quality report cards addressing information asymmetry in the health care market have become a popular strategy used by policymakers to improve the quality of care for elderly. Using individual level data from the largest German sickness fund merged with institutional level data, we examine the...

Background: Across the member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), pay-for-performance (P4P) programs have been implemented in the inpatient sector to improve the quality of care provided by hospitals. However, little is known about whether such...

This paper analyses possible options how to improve the risk adjustment of the health insurance system in the Czech Republic. Out of possible options it argues for including Pharmaceutical Cost Groups (PCGs) as additional risk factors since it is an improvement that can be implemented almost...

This paper investigates the factors influencing the allocation of time between public and private sectors by medical specialists. A discrete choice structural labour supply model is estimated, where specialists choose from a set of job packages that are characterised by the number of working...

This work is a compilation of studies produced at the Social Studies Department - Disoc/Ipea to support the elaboration of the document Brazil: the state of the Union - 2007. Health outcomes in the last decades, health policies after 1988 and the role of the government in health care are...

Long waiting lines are a common feature and a major concern in many public health care delivery systems. The waiting lines are often characterized as inefficient, because they are a burden to patients without generating any gains for providers. There is an ongoing debate in Germany regarding the...