Main Field of Study and progress level:
Economics: Second cycle, has second-cycle course/s as entry requirements
Grading scale: Three-grade scale
Responsible department: Department of Economics
Established by: Rector of Umeå School of Business and Economics, 2016-11-11
Contents
The course consists of five parts that all begins with an introductory lecture and finishes with a mandatory and graded seminar where students actively discuss scientific articles and possibly other texts.
The course begins with an introduction to economic theories that relate to insurances. The students will then read articles that relate to this, which are then discussed at the first seminar. The second part of the course deals with the relationships between the use of health care and health and problems with measuring these relationships. Then follows a part about the costs of health care and how these can be limited. The fourth part of the course focuses on pharmaceutical insurances and the prices and cost for pharmaceuticals. The course’s final part is about health behaviors.
Expected learning outcomes
After completing the course, the student is expected to be able to: - Describe economic theories related to insurance. - Describe the difficulties in empirically measuring the relationships between the choice of insurance, utilization of health services, and health. - Describe the advantages and disadvantages of various measures to limit the costs of health care and describe approaches to identify the effects of these measures. - Describe different reference price systems and econometric problems associated with measuring how these affect the cost of drugs in the short and long term. - Explain the different theories that can be used to explain people's health-related choices. - Describe the strengths, weaknesses and main results of the articles that are part of the course.
Required Knowledge
University: Courses in Economics at undergraduate level equal to 90ECTS (whereof 30ECTS C-level courses) including a Bachelor thesis of 15ECTS or the equal writing experience. In addition Mathematical Economics I D7, Econometrics I D12 and Microeconomics Analysis I D25 or the equivalent is required. Students are also required to have English B from Swedish gymnasium or the equivalent.
Form of instruction
The teaching consists of lectures and seminars.
Examination modes
The examination is in the form of seminars and short assignments. Students who due to illness or other valid reason is absent from any seminar or fail any seminar will be offered a new examination occasion during the course or short after the ending of the course for the part they have not passed. One additional examination occasion will be offered in proximity to the ending of the course. Subsequent examination opportunities are given when the course organized next time.
The following grading system will be used: Pass with Distinction (Väl Godkänd) Pass (Godkänd) Fail (Underkänd). Students that get the grade Pass may not undergo a new examination for higher grades.
When a student has failed an examination on two occasions, he or she has a right to have another grading teacher. A written request for an alternative examiner should be handed to the Dean of the Business School no later than two weeks before the next examination opportunity.
Credit transfer Academic credit transfers are according to the University credit transfer regulations.
Literature
The literature list is not available through the web.
Please contact the faculty.
