
Health Care Economics
Taught by Harvard Medical School faculty, Health Care Economics, a Harvard Online course, provides insights into the interactions between industries in the US health care sector and teaches what economic forces are shaping health care.
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What You'll Learn
The course will be delivered via HBS Online’s course platform and immerse learners in real-world examples from experts at industry-leading organizations. By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
- Articulate the drivers of spending and spending growth in health care and evaluate how your organization’s strategy and decision-making processes impact total spending and value
- Describe approaches to getting the incentives right for both providers and patients and evaluate the impacts of changes to these incentives
- Understand risk and pooling as they relate to insurance markets and health benefit design
- Define the role of employers, insurers, and government in influencing the economics of health care markets, such as spending, access to care, and stability of insurance markets
- Explain how technology and patients’ and providers’ decisions contribute to high spending and spending growth, and how they impact their own organizations.
About the Professor

Michael Chernew, PhD, is the Leonard D. Schaeffer Professor of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Chernew’s research examines several areas related to improving the health care system, including studies of novel benefit designs, Medicare Advantage, alternative payment models, low-value care, and the causes and consequences of rising health care spending. Dr. Chernew is currently serving as Chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), where he previously served as the Vice Chair and as a Member. In 2000, 2004, and 2010, he served on technical advisory panels for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that reviewed the assumptions used by Medicare actuaries to assess the financial status of Medicare trust funds. He's a member of the Congressional Budget Office’s Panel of Health Advisors and Vice Chair of the Massachusetts Health Connector Board. Dr. Chernew is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a Senior Visiting Fellow at MITRE. He's currently a co-editor of the American Journal of Managed Care and on advisory boards for several private companies in the health care space, including Virta Health, Archway, and HEALTH[at]SCALE.
Who Will Benefit
Rising Leaders
Develop a comprehensive understanding of the health care landscape, including the key drivers of rising health care spending.
Administrators and Policy Makers
Gain insights into strategic decisions around new business initiatives, health benefit plans, reimbursement contract negotiations, and care delivery models.
Providers
Understand the financial impacts of new technologies and services and how to create value-based care for patients.
Program Structure
Health Care Economics consists of approximately 20 hours of material delivered over a six-week period. You can complete the coursework on your own time while meeting regular deadlines.
Medical professionals who complete the course are eligible for 19.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ through Harvard Medical School. Upon successful completion of the course, participants will have access to register and claim their credits through the Harvard Medical School’s continuing education platform.
Syllabus
Even for those within the health care industry, the economics of the United States health care system are stunningly complex and can be challenging to navigate. In Health Care Economics, gain insights into the interactions between industries in the health care sector and learn what economic forces are shaping health care. You'll cover core topics, such as moral hazard and adverse selection, and examine how these forces, as well as the actions of patients, providers, and other key stakeholders, shape outcomes in the health care market. This course will examine health care spending growth, considering new technologies and other drivers of growth through an economic lens, and explore the theoretical framework behind controlling health care spending growth through changes to benefit design and payment reform.
Health Care Economics features real-world examples, interactive lessons, and conversations with industry experts. This course allows you to better understand core economic principles as you learn to create more compelling programs, develop more effective growth strategies, negotiate better reimbursement contracts and partnerships, and advocate more effectively both inside and outside your organization.
Learning requirements: In order to earn a Certificate of Completion from Harvard Online, participants must thoughtfully complete all 6 modules by stated deadlines.
Modules | Big Questions | Key Topics | Key Exercises |
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Module 1: Spending Growth |
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Module 2: The Role of the Patient |
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Module 3: The Role of the Provider and Health Care Production |
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Module 4: Risk and Insurance |
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Module 5: Benefit Design |
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Module 6: Payment Reform |
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The HBS Online Advantage
- World-class faculty
- Edge-of-your-seat online learning
- Global peer collaboration and networking
- Real-world, case-based learning
Harvard Business School Online offers a unique and highly engaging way to learn vital business concepts. Immerse yourself in real challenges faced by business leaders across a variety of industries. You’ll wrestle with the same issues and imperfect information, while problem-solving and interacting with fellow learners from around the world.
Stories from Our Learners
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This is an amazing course. The professor did a fantastic job dissecting the complexities of healthcare into chewable junks that made it easier to understand the complexities.
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I felt the course covered a good overall scope and understanding of healthcare economics and would be beneficial for anyone seeking or needing a greater understanding of the stakeholders and forces at work in the healthcare sector. This applies for those new to healthcare as well as those who have worked in the industry for long periods of time.
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This is now my fourth HBS online course that I have taken. I love the format that lets me learn asynchronously when I have time in my busy schedule. The HBS courses do a wonderful job encouraging interaction with peer learners which amplifies the learning. The HBS courses foster this peer engagement much more effectively than I have found in other online courses that I have taken.
