Course content - Learning outcome - Admission - Prerequisites - Teaching - Examination - Evaluation

Course content

The first part of this course covers economic welfare theory. Properties of Health care markets are contrasted with those of perfect competitive markets. The sources of market failures in health care markets are identified. Descriptions of how governments and other decision makers (may) react to market failure will be given. Some of the topics are already treated in HØKON 1102 but now a more elaborate presentation will be given. The second part of the course covers topics related to market failures resulting from different types of information problems. Different types of information problems are analysed by means of Principal agent theory. The sources of market failures in health care markets are identified. Descriptions of how governments and other decision makers (may) react to market failure will be given.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

This course will provide you with knowledge on

• The role of prices in efficient markets
• What Characterizes efficient markets
• What characterizes market failures in health care markets and what causes the failures.
• How regulations observed in today’s health care markets can be linked to particular sources of market failure.
• The role of market power in influencing efficiency.
• Why information problems can result in sub-optimal health care quality.
• Why people want to purchase health insurance.
• Why individuals with health insurance may demand to much more care.
• What Characterizes efficient markets for health insurance. What are the sources of market failure in health insurance markets and what can be done to improve efficiency these markets.
• How the regulation and organization observed in today’s health insurance markets can be linked to particular sources of market failure.

Skills

This course will provide you with the skills necessary to use diagrams as a tool to perform economic analysis, and identify which economic analysis is appropriate for the problem at hand. By applying this tool you will be able to

• model the individual’s labour supply
• Model the monopoly’s supply decision.
• Explain why improvements in economic efficiency are desirable, by means of examples.
• Model the optimal government policy under different types of market failure, such as the presence of public goods and externalities in consumption.
• Explain, by using examples, why there sometimes may be necessary to accept economic efficiency in practice.
• Model how health insurance influences the individual’s demand for health care.
• How the asymmetric information influence economic outcomes
• Discuss potential government policies under different types of market failure
• Explain, by using examples, why there sometimes may be necessary to accept economic efficiency in practice.

Competence

You will be able to apply economic welfare theory when analysing allocation of health goods and be able to understand under what conditions health care services can be efficiently produced and allocated through markets. You will also be able to analyse market outcomes in situations characterized by asymmetric information.
You will be able work independently with identifying potential sources of inefficiencies in health care markets. You will be able solve problems and link economic policy recommendations to specific types of market failure. You will also be able to identify potential difficulties with designing and implementing policies that improve efficiency.

Admission

Students at UiO must apply for courses in StudentWeb.

International applicants, if you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures for international applicants.

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Prerequisites

Formal prerequisite knowledge

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Recommended previous knowledge

Introductory microeconomics / HØKON1102

Teaching

Lectures and seminars

Access to teaching

A student who has completed compulsory instruction and coursework and has had these approved, is not entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework. A student who has been admitted to a course, but who has not completed compulsory instruction and coursework or had these approved, is entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework, depending on available capacity.

Examination

A final written exam. There will be given a compulsory term paper, which has to be handed in by all students.
If the compulsory term paper is not approved, students will have a new attempt by handing in a new paper within one week

Please note that submitted termpapers in this course can be checked for plagiarism by means of computer software for plagiarism detection.

. A student who still not succeeds will not be permitted to take the exam in this course.

Examination support material

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Dictionary and calculator (only the calculator Citizen SR-270X is allowed)

Language of examination

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HME4308: All written exams and term papers at the master's programme in Health Economics, Policy and Management have to be conducted in English.
HØKON2201: The language of examination is english but answers can be given in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or in English, see §5.4 i Forskrift om studier og eksamener ved Universitetet i Oslo (norwegian only).

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

Compulsory term paper: pass/fail

Explanations and appeals

You may request an explanation of your grades, and you may also appeal against your grades or make a complaint about formal examination errors. Read more about explanations and appeals.

Resit an examination

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In this course the exam is regularly scheduled each semester. It is not arranged make-up exam in this course, cf. § 5.5 i Forskrift om studier og eksamener ved Universitetet i Oslo.

Withdrawal from an examination

A student may sit this exam up to 3 times. If a student wishes to withdraw from the exam, s/he must do so in StudentWeb at least two weeks prior to the first day of the exam. Failure to do so will be counted as one of the three opportunities to sit the exam.

Special examination arrangements

If you have a disability or a health problem that entails significant inconvenience in an examination situation, you may be considered for special examination arrangements. Mothers who are breastfeeding may apply for extra time to complete the exam.

Evaluation

Feedback from our students is essential to us in our efforts to ensure and further improve the high quality of our programmes and courses. All courses are subject to continuous evaluation. At regular intervals we also ask students on a particular course to participate in a more comprehensive, periodic evaluation of this course.