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Extending Choice In English Health Care: The implications of the economic evidence

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  • Carol Propper
  • Deborah Wilson
  • Simon Burgess

Abstract

Extending choice in health care is currently popular amongst English, and other, politicians. Those promoting choice make an appeal to a simple economic argument. Competitive pressure helps make private firms more efficient and consumer choice acts as a major driver for efficiency. Giving service users the ability to choose applies competitive pressure to health care providers and, analogously with private markets, they will raise their game to attract business. The paper subjects this assumption to the scrutiny provided by a review of the theoretical and empirical economic evidence on choice in health care. The review considers several interlocking aspects of the current English choice policy: competition between hospitals, the responsiveness of patients to greater choice, the provision of information and the use of fixed prices. The paper concludes that there is neither strong theoretical nor empirical support for competition, but that there are cases where competition has improved outcomes. The paper ends with a discussion of the implications of this literature for policies to promote competition in the English NHS.

Suggested Citation

  • Carol Propper & Deborah Wilson & Simon Burgess, 2005. "Extending Choice In English Health Care: The implications of the economic evidence," The Centre for Market and Public Organisation 05/133, The Centre for Market and Public Organisation, University of Bristol, UK.
    • Handle: RePEc:bri:cmpowp:05/133
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    2. Zack Cooper & Stephen Gibbons & Simon Jones & Alistair McGuire, 2011. "Does Hospital Competition Save Lives? Evidence From The English NHS Patient Choice Reforms," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 121(554), pages 228-260, August.
    3. Cooper, Zack & Gibbons, Stephen & Jones, Simon & McGuire, Alistair, 2010. "Does hospital competition improve efficiency? An analysis of the recent market-based reforms to the English NHS," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 28578, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Cookson, Richard & Laudicella, Mauro & Donni, Paolo Li, 2013. "Does hospital competition harm equity? Evidence from the English National Health Service," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 410-422.
    5. Cookson R & Laudicella M, 2009. "Do the poor still cost more? The relationship between small area income deprivation and length of stay for elective hip replacement in the English NHS from 2001/2 to 2006/7," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 09/07, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    6. Richard Cookson & Mauro Laudicella & Paolo Li Donni, 2011. "Measuring change in health care equity using small area administrative data – evidence from the English NHS 2001-8," Working Papers 067cherp, Centre for Health Economics, University of York.
    7. Cookson, Richard & Laudicella, Mauro & Donni, Paolo Li, 2012. "Measuring change in health care equity using small-area administrative data – Evidence from the English NHS 2001–2008," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(8), pages 1514-1522.
    8. Fabbri, D & Robone, S, 2008. "The geography of hospital admission in a National Health Service with patient choice: evidence from Italy," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 08/29, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    9. Andritsos, Dimitrios A. & Tang, Christopher S., 2014. "Introducing competition in healthcare services: The role of private care and increased patient mobility," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 234(3), pages 898-909.
    10. Vomhof, Markus, 2016. "Hospital competition with heterogeneous patient groups: Incentives and regulation," Ruhr Economic Papers 624, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    11. Jacqueline O'Reilly & Miriam M. Wiley, 2008. "How Local is Hospital Treatment? An Exploratory Analysis of Public/Private Variation in Location of Treatment in Irish Acute Public Hospitals," Papers WP237, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    12. Brenna, Elenka, 2011. "Quasi-market and cost-containment in Beveridge systems: The Lombardy model of Italy," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 103(2), pages 209-218.
    13. Elenka Brenna & Federico Spandonaro, 2014. "Does federalism induce patients’ mobility across regions? Evidence from the Italian experience," DISCE - Working Papers del Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza def009, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Dipartimenti e Istituti di Scienze Economiche (DISCE).
    14. Michiel Bijlsma & Pierre Koning & Victoria Shestalova, 2013. "The Effect of Competition on Process and Outcome Quality of Hospital Care in the Netherlands," De Economist, Springer, vol. 161(2), pages 121-155, June.
    15. Joan Costa-i-Font & Valentina Zigante, 2014. "The Choice Agenda' in European Health Systems: The Role of 'Middle Class Demands," LEQS – LSE 'Europe in Question' Discussion Paper Series 82, European Institute, LSE.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    competition; choice; health care; English NHS reforms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I11 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Analysis of Health Care Markets
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

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