The level of governmental organization and function at the national or country-wide level.

The complex of political institutions, laws, and customs through which the function of governing is carried out in a specific political unit.

Federal, state, or local government organized methods of financial assistance.

Agencies of the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT of the United States.

Exercise of governmental authority to control conduct.

Administrative units of government responsible for policy making and management of governmental activities.

The level of governmental organization and function below that of the national or country-wide government.

Legal guarantee protecting the individual from attack on personal liberties, right to fair trial, right to vote, and freedom from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin. (from http://www.usccr.gov/ accessed 1/31/2003)

Activities concerned with governmental policies, functions, etc.

Decisions, usually developed by government policymakers, for determining present and future objectives pertaining to the health care system.

Innovation and improvement of the health care system by reappraisal, amendment of services, and removal of faults and abuses in providing and distributing health services to patients. It includes a re-alignment of health services and health insurance to maximum demographic elements (the unemployed, indigent, uninsured, elderly, inner cities, rural areas) with reference to coverage, hospitalization, pricing and cost containment, insurers' and employers' costs, pre-existing medical conditions, prescribed drugs, equipment, and services.

The condition in which individuals are financially unable to access adequate medical care without depriving themselves and their dependents of food, clothing, shelter, and other essentials of living.

State plans prepared by the State Health Planning and Development Agencies which are made up from plans submitted by the Health Systems Agencies and subject to review and revision by the Statewide Health Coordinating Council.

Financial support of research activities.

Economic sector concerned with the provision, distribution, and consumption of health care services and related products.

A course or method of action selected, usually by a government, from among alternatives to guide and determine present and future decisions.

Time period from 1901 through 2000 of the common era.

Components of a national health care system which administer specific services, e.g., national health insurance.

Federal program, created by Public Law 89-97, Title XIX, a 1965 amendment to the Social Security Act, administered by the states, that provides health care benefits to indigent and medically indigent persons.

Branch of medicine concerned with the prevention and control of disease and disability, and the promotion of physical and mental health of the population on the international, national, state, or municipal level.

An operating division of the US Department of Health and Human Services. It is concerned with the overall planning, promoting, and administering of programs pertaining to health and medical research. Until 1995, it was an agency of the United States PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE.

The concept concerned with all aspects of providing and distributing health services to a patient population.

Insurance providing for payment of services rendered by the pharmacist. Services include the preparation and distribution of medical products.

Critical and exhaustive investigation or experimentation, having for its aim the discovery of new facts and their correct interpretation, the revision of accepted conclusions, theories, or laws in the light of newly discovered facts, or the practical application of such new or revised conclusions, theories, or laws. (Webster, 3d ed)

Federal program, created by Public Law 89-97, Title XVIII-Health Insurance for the Aged, a 1965 amendment to the Social Security Act, that provides health insurance benefits to persons over the age of 65 and others eligible for Social Security benefits. It consists of two separate but coordinated programs: hospital insurance (MEDICARE PART A) and supplementary medical insurance (MEDICARE PART B). (Hospital Administration Terminology, AHA, 2d ed and A Discursive Dictionary of Health Care, US House of Representatives, 1976)

Reductions in all or any portion of the costs of providing goods or services. Savings may be incurred by the provider or the consumer.

Smallest political subdivisions within a country at which general governmental functions are carried-out.

Research that involves the application of the natural sciences, especially biology and physiology, to medicine.

A systematic statement of policy rules or principles. Guidelines may be developed by government agencies at any level, institutions, professional societies, governing boards, or by convening expert panels. The text may be cursive or in outline form but is generally a comprehensive guide to problems and approaches in any field of activity. For guidelines in the field of health care and clinical medicine, PRACTICE GUIDELINES AS TOPIC is available.

Insurance providing coverage of medical, surgical, or hospital care in general or for which there is no specific heading.

The largest country in North America, comprising 10 provinces and three territories. Its capital is Ottawa.

The degree to which individuals are inhibited or facilitated in their ability to gain entry to and to receive care and services from the health care system. Factors influencing this ability include geographic, architectural, transportational, and financial considerations, among others.

Generally refers to the amount of protection available and the kind of loss which would be paid for under an insurance contract with an insurer. (Slee & Slee, Health Care Terms, 2d ed)

Programs and activities sponsored or administered by local, state, or national governments.

An approach of practicing medicine with the goal to improve and evaluate patient care. It requires the judicious integration of best research evidence with the patient's values to make decisions about medical care. This method is to help physicians make proper diagnosis, devise best testing plan, choose best treatment and methods of disease prevention, as well as develop guidelines for large groups of patients with the same disease. (from JAMA 296 (9), 2006)

Encouraging consumer behaviors most likely to optimize health potentials (physical and psychosocial) through health information, preventive programs, and access to medical care.

That distinct portion of the institutional, industrial, or economic structure of a country that is controlled or owned by non-governmental, private interests.

The decision process by which individuals, groups or institutions establish policies pertaining to plans, programs or procedures.

Detailed financial plans for carrying out specific activities for a certain period of time. They include proposed income and expenditures.

An agency of the PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE concerned with the overall planning, promoting, and administering of programs pertaining to maintaining standards of quality of foods, drugs, therapeutic devices, etc.

The interactions between representatives of institutions, agencies, or organizations.

The enactment of laws and ordinances and their regulation by official organs of a nation, state, or other legislative organization. It refers also to health-related laws and regulations in general or for which there is no specific heading.

The area of a nation's economy that is tax-supported and under government control.

Laws and regulations, pertaining to the field of medicine, proposed for enactment or enacted by a legislative body.

Governmental levies on property, inheritance, gifts, etc.

The amounts spent by individuals, groups, nations, or private or public organizations for total health care and/or its various components. These amounts may or may not be equivalent to the actual costs (HEALTH CARE COSTS) and may or may not be shared among the patient, insurers, and/or employers.

Management of public health organizations or agencies.

Administration and functional structures for the purpose of collectively systematizing activities for a particular goal.

The attitude of a significant portion of a population toward any given proposition, based upon a measurable amount of factual evidence, and involving some degree of reflection, analysis, and reasoning.

Exploitation through misrepresentation of the facts or concealment of the purposes of the exploiter.

The interchange of goods or commodities, especially on a large scale, between different countries or between populations within the same country. It includes trade (the buying, selling, or exchanging of commodities, whether wholesale or retail) and business (the purchase and sale of goods to make a profit). (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed, p411, p2005 & p283)

Laws concerned with manufacturing, dispensing, and marketing of drugs.

Institutional funding for facilities and for equipment which becomes a part of the assets of the institution.

All organized methods of funding.

Discussion of documents issued by local, regional, or national governments or by their agencies or subdivisions.

Health insurance plans for employees, and generally including their dependents, usually on a cost-sharing basis with the employer paying a percentage of the premium.

The provision of monetary resources including money or capital and credit; obtaining or furnishing money or capital for a purchase or enterprise and the funds so obtained. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed.)

The interaction of persons or groups of persons representing various nations in the pursuit of a common goal or interest.

The promotion and support of consumers' rights and interests.

The aggregate business enterprise of agriculture, manufacture, and distribution related to tobacco and tobacco-derived products.

Procedures outlined for the care of casualties and the maintenance of services in disasters.

Freedom of equipment from actual or potential hazards.

Planning for needed health and/or welfare services and facilities.

The obligations and accountability assumed in carrying out actions or ideas on behalf of others.

A republic in western Africa, south of NIGER between BENIN and CAMEROON. Its capital is Abuja.

Hospitals controlled by various types of government, i.e., city, county, district, state or federal.

Payments or services provided under stated circumstances under the terms of an insurance policy. In prepayment programs, benefits are the services the programs will provide at defined locations and to the extent needed.

Control of drug and narcotic use by international agreement, or by institutional systems for handling prescribed drugs. This includes regulations concerned with the manufacturing, dispensing, approval (DRUG APPROVAL), and marketing of drugs.

Criteria to determine eligibility of patients for medical care programs and services.

The effort of two or more parties to secure the business of a third party by offering, usually under fair or equitable rules of business practice, the most favorable terms.

Use for articles on the investing of funds for income or profit.

A component of the Department of Health and Human Services to oversee and direct the Medicare and Medicaid programs and related Federal medical care quality control staffs. Name was changed effective June 14, 2001.