...Aggregate Demand and Supply Models Introduction Social, technological and political changes in the US and around the world affect the U.S. economy today. Even if the U.S. economy presently remains as one of the world’s largest economy, the country is now in deep recession and must The purpose of this paper is to understand the prevailing economic trends in the US particularly on unemployment, interest rates, and consumer income including the expectations of both the consumer and business sectors. This paper will also discuss the effect of these economic indicators on the aggregate supply and demand and the evaluation of current fiscal policies that were recommended by the government. This paper aims to let future business managers be aware of the importance of comprehending current US fiscal policies as it outlines the blueprint of change to the US economy. Current Economic Trends Unemployment is a term that you will hear often when spending time in any city in the United States. It is an issue that is spoken of from the dinner table to the oval office. The United States experienced its “worst downturn since the Great Depression” but continues to recover adding 176,000 jobs to the private sector in March-April 2013 and reducing unemployment to 7.5% (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013). President Barack Obama has introduced large plans to reform banking in America. The people of the U.S. expect to see banks become more regulated, they expect that home loans will be reasonable...
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...the exponential growth of health care spending, as a portion of the GDP, will eventually consume much of the government income as well as suck the resources from personal consumption and create more issues to spiral out of control. The writer takes a deeper angle of looking at health care spending as a result of inconsistent production. To better understand the core of the problem, looking deeper at the health services, consumption of goods, and overall usage of resources have to be seen as a basis of GDP. In other words, as a society, everything people use for everyday living must be produced by the people themselves. If society only creates a certain amount of goods and services, but more of these same goods and services are being depleted at a rate higher than production, special attention must be given to this predicament. The author does not describe particular strategies or techniques, but seems to imply areas that require more focus and attention in order to redirect funding through the proper channels. Using the GDP as its guiding force, rather than just overall health care spending, the author uses graphical analysis to show how health care must be solved internally from a production standpoint (input adjustments) rather than just explaining how much is actually demanded by consumers. Personal health consumptions have risen indirectly with that of nondurable and durable goods showing that people are forced to use more their income towards health services. In the past 33...
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...businesses, you just do not have an exact science on how things will turn out. Industry businessman, economist etc. can only make assumptions based on occurrences. So, if you are in a business to make a profit, and satisfy stakeholders you need to have a plan. Sometimes the plan calls for mergers and acquisitions. Mergers and acquisitions can have a positive and/or negative effect. “According to a KPMG study, 83% of all mergers and acquisitions failed to produce any benefit for the shareholders and over half actually destroyed value.”(http://www.itapintl.com/...the-impact-of), to be a good CFO you must do the research to determine if acquiring another company will be beneficial. This report will identify the risk factors of the target acquisition company Kmart and the risk factors present in the parent company Costco. Our team will then show how these risks can be mitigated. BECAUSE OF THE RISKS CAN COSTCO ACQUIRE THE #3 KMART? KMART RISKS/MITIAGATION Many investors such as Costco may be unaware of all the risks associated with investing in a specific company. Providing current and future investors with risk factors allows investors to evaluate a company and make an informed investment decision. Kmart’s operations and financial results are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including those described below, that could significantly affect the Costco’s judgments in acquiring the business. Here are few risks factors which Kmart may face with Costco...
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...Task 5 M1 – Analyse the implications of government policies on Balfour Beatty. * Discuss how changes in the levels of priorities of government spending might affect the company. How might managers react to these changes? * An explanation of the multiplier mechanism. * Discuss effects on the firm’s possible expansion plans. * You should analyse the impact that government policies have on a selected business and the possible reactions of the business to the decisions. (Word document 2/3 sides of A4) The table below will help you to structure your work – when you analyse the impact of each policy remember to discuss in terms of government spending priorities and M1 links with P2 and P3. Policy | Definition | Example (S) | Business ImpactAdvantages and disadvantages | Management Reaction to Policy | Economic Policy | Economic Policy designed to deal with growth, unemployment and inflation to improve standards of living and reduce unemployment. Linked with policies on education, training and skills. | In December 2009, the (then) Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, announced a package of measures to try to tackle unemployment. These included internships and guarantees of places in education or training for every 16 and 17 year old in the UK. This was due to the level of young people being NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) exceeding one million people, i.e. 1 in 10 of people aged 16– 19. | An advantage to the business...
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...person an idea of the overall financial health of the company. One can see the amount of assets and liabilities a company has and make a decision as to the overall economic viability before making a stock purchase. Second, one can use the numbers from the balance sheet to compare to other companies in similar sectors in order to decide which company provides the greatest opportunity for investment. Third, the numbers from the balance sheet can be used to create ratios that tell a little more information about a company. For example, a person could use balance sheet numbers to figure up the asset to liabilities ratio. This number could provide some insight into whether a company will be able to meet its financial obligations. After all these factors are considered a person might be able to make a fairly sound investment in a company's stock. How a Manage May Benefit From Understanding the Balance Sheet There are several ways a business manager can benefit from understanding the balance sheet. First, if the company invests in other companies then having a good knowledge of the balance sheet would help a business manager advise leaderships on which companies look good financially. Second, understanding of the balance sheet will help a manager understand how his or her company is perceived outside the organization. For example, if the manager sees that his company has a large number of liabilities on the balance sheet, the the business manager would know that those outside the...
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... Economic Terms and Healthcare History Health care economics have drastically changed over the course of history in the United States. While some can contribute these changes due to the evolutionary changes the US has undergone since the beginning, the major contributing factors that influence the changes in health care economics are advances in technology and medical care. “To help ease the healthcare problem, Baylor Hospital in Dallas created a system - which eventually became Blue Cross - to help people pay their hospital bills. As science, medicine, and hospitals grew more sophisticated and more successful, more people turned to hospitals and doctors for care - and costs continued to rise. Blue Shield insurance for doctors' services started gaining ground in the late '30s as a way for doctors to protect their interests and their payments” ("How Did Healthcare Come About In The United States?", 2012). It is essential to remember that the driving force behind health care economics is money, and it plays a vital part to the success of the health care industry. In the past, the greater part of us paid medical bills with private funds; today insurance companies cover the bulk of the payment, with people paying only a small portion of the total. It is important to understand healthcare economic history, and the cash flow system. Today, financial managers are able to follow the money through the health care system. History shows that many physicians would trade...
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...Harvard Business School 9-389-080 Rev. December 5, 1989 Country Analysis Framework This framework takes the nation as the unit of analysis. Effective managers must be able to analyze systematically the national and international environments in which they operate. This note presents a framework to help them do this. Since government actions shape business environments, that is the starting point for country analysis. In this view, nations have strategic purposes, the capacity to mobilize resources, and the power to affect their economies. The country analysis framework has three interrelated components: strategy, performance, and context. Each of these has economic, political, and social dimensions. All governments have a national strategy composed of explicit or implicit goals and a set of policies to achieve those goals. These lead to performance, which can be judged by assessing how well the country is doing economically, politically, and socially. These outcomes also depend on a country’s context, which has domestic aspects (economic, political, social, institutional, and ideological) and international aspects (trading relationships, political links, multilateral institutions, global industries). In turn, the outcomes affect the context for future strategies. Thus, strategy, performance, and context are interdependent. Country analysis can therefore begin with any of the three components, but requires examining all of them. Country analysis is not a...
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...wish you every success in your new position. Contained in this briefing note is information which will help you gain knowledge and understanding of NHS Highland as an organisation services and how HR aims to support its strategy Introduction (purpose and goals) NHS Highland, in common with all Scottish health boards, has a huge advantage in being responsible for the total health needs of the population and for integrated care. This means it is responsible for better health of communities through population wide and individually focused initiatives to maximise health and prevent illness; for better care of its patients through quick access to modern services, in clean and infection free facilities, by well trained and courteous staff; and for better value for the use of the public money they spend by ensuring there is no waste and inefficiency, money is spent only on what is needed and has evident therapeutic benefits and variation from core care pathways is the exception. Products and services NHS Highland’s customer is the public and its vision is to provide quality care at all times; to support people and communities to maximise their own health; to develop precision driven services so that when people need care they experience timely, focused, effective services that minimises the duration and frequency Our approach embraces the Healthcare Quality Strategy for Scotland. At its heart this recognises people’s priorities are for: * Caring and compassionate...
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... Making the Right Decision Qualified managers make difficult decisions, and they must determine based on the problem they need to solve what is the appropriate decision. Higher management does decision-making, but the bottom of the pyramid is also is involved. Decisions can have an effect on patients, small portion of the organization or the whole organization. Health care administrators require assistance in making the right decision, and they face many barriers when making a decision. As technology changes, so does the process of decision-making. Budget Cuts and Medicaid Patients As a manager for Hillsborough county clinic in Florida that services the population who utilizes Medicaid just received a budget cut by 15%. The manager is responsible for deciding what clinical services to cut or introduced new services to lower the budget. A management meeting is held to determine which services will be eliminated, kept or add new services to replace olds services to lower the budgeted amount. During the meeting research is compiled out of evidence-based decision-making practices, and the staff is involved in the decision-making process as well. The Informed Decision Toolbox or IDT was developed to assist with decision-making processes. Rundall wrote in order for managers to overcome barriers they must follow six key steps, “ (1) framing the management question, (2) finding sources...
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...Financial Effects and Constraints Health care organizations throughout the world are facing many financial challenges. Management has to find ways to streamline processes, reduce waste, and bring profit to the organization. Pharmacies in the health care system tend to be one of the major departments that bring in a very large amount of revenue for an organization. Therefore, it is extremely important for management to focus on processes that will result in the smooth operation of the pharmacy department. Management must be cognizant of the revenue constraints and financial factors that the pharmacy department faces and be able to make good business decisions that benefit the organization. Additionally, to forecast accurately the future of a hospital’s pharmacy, management must have the required knowledgebase to review and interpret the appropriate financial reports. Pharmacy Effects on Operations Management Health care managers must continually monitor the processes and operations of the pharmacy in their organization. Pharmacies are one of the major profit producers of a health care organization, therefore ensuring that required workflow processes are efficiently and effectively in place are critical. Pharmacists and pharmacies play a major role in the delivery of quality health care as they distribute safe medications to the patient population. To prevent disruptions in services and to make a positive impact on the hospitals bottom line, pharmacy management...
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...Comparison Reimbursement Programs and the Movement of Finances in the United States Health Care System by Ronald J. Sanders MBA520, MBOL2, Health Care Organization Instructor: Dr. Sandra Washington Saint Leo University Distance Learning March 17, 2013 Abstract Effective payment program strategies are a major part of administering health care. Reimbursement programs are a part of the United States (U.S) health care system. They represent a financial tool for providing cash flow to service physicians and hospitals. Many times, the ability to provide quality health care depends on the payment for the services given by physicians and hospitals. This paper presents a view of payment reimbursement systems within the health care industry. A comparative overview and description of payment reimbursement will be given in order to understand the flow of finances in the health care industry. The focus will be on the capitation and fee-for-service reimbursement systems. Readers will then be able to conclude that the appropriate reimbursement method is dependent upon the amount of risk a party is able to assume. Comparison of Reimbursement Programs and the Movement of Finances in the United States Health Care System Physicians that are part of the managed care system have several methods in which to be compensated or be reimbursed for services. Two popular methods are Capitation and Fee-for-Service. Physicians have confronted several challenges...
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...Analysis of the Macroeconomic Environment within the Health-Care and Automobile Industries Abstract This report discusses macroeconomic factors that impact both the automotive and health-care industries. Interest rates, consumer price index (CPI), consumer confidence, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), wage rates, and inventory levels impact the macroeconomic environment to influence these industries in the short run. Consumption as a percentage of the GDP depicted in table 1 indicates a continuous declined in consumer spending from 2005 through 2010 and suggests that consumers are becoming more conservative with disposable income spent on elective health-care products and procedures as-well-as new vehicle purchases. As the nominal interest rates indicate in table 2, the FED attempted to encourage consumer spending by decreasing the interest rates to encourage expansionistic economic activity, which would also be a positive influencing factor for both the health-care and automotive industries. The automobile industry is volatile by nature and heavily influence by macroeconomic factors, while the health-care industry enjoys an inelastic environment. Macroeconomic factors influence the health-care industry, it is unlikely essential health-care demand will decrease in the short term; however, elective health-care products and services will likely suffer as will new vehicle purchases as consumers remain conservative. The future is not as bleak as one might anticipate. The automotive...
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...these conditions. Having discussed the history of IT in different market situations, this paper throws a light on future conditions and growth in the field of IT. DEMAND ANALYSIS OF IT IN DIFFERENT MARKET CONDITIONS Introduction Demand is an economic principle that tells us about consumers' want, readiness and their capability to pay a price for a specific good or service. It is a common belief that greater the demand, greater is the price of a good or service. But, what leads to the demand of a particular good/service is a complex analysis and is different for each good/service. Any business, before development or expansion, studies the demand for its product. This study of demand is a complex process. Based on this demand analysis report, a firm leadership would decide on extension or starting of the business. The demand analysis might help determine or justify a desire for expansion in a particular sector or just to assess the health of a particular sector. Even though the demand analysis procedure is performed differently based on the type of business or study, participants may still share some fundamental procedures based on market conditions. These core strategies might include assessing the target market, reviewing the current and emerging trends, and determining the current market share. A demand analysis should also include projecting future activity. Information Technology is "the study, design, development, application, implementation, support or...
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...Health Care Reform Part I Health care spending in the United States is among the highest of industrialized nations (Health Policy Education, 2011). Health care reform found its roots in the 1900s when just prior to that physicians were caring for hospitalized patients without charge. Today it is a main political issue tipping the scales toward a presidential election. Team C chose this topic because of the serious nature and as future managers, leaders in health care administration; a greater understanding is required. This team seeks to discuss three major points in regard to health care spending, such as unnecessary spending, options if health care reforms fail, and ongoing coverage for ongoing care as it relates to macroeconomics and also propose three solutions identified within the research, respectively, information technology, influence of pricing and allocation of services, and prevention. Background Health care expenses in the United States were in excess of $2.3 trillion in 2008. Accounting for three times as much spent in 1990 and eight times that spent in 1980. According to Kaiseredu.org (2010),”This equated to $7,681 per resident and accounted for 16.2% of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP)” (Background). Below is a graph taken from Kaiser.EDU.org, which depicts how dollars were spent in regard to health care 2008. Today health care costs account for 16% of the nation’s GDP. On an individual basis, per capita, the cost is twice that of other major...
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...management analysis is commonly used by mangers as a tool helping to make sure that all resources in existence get put to use correctly. The budgets are determined annually because they are determined by the preceding year’s budget and differences. Budgets can be controlled by specific techniques to control budgets within prediction, consider five to seven expense results with budget anticipations, explain possible factors that cause fluctuations, present ways to keep results associated with goals, share three benchmarking strategies, and consider the ones that could increase budget accuracy, and give good reason for the choices made. (Finkler, 2007) Several techniques are often used to regulate budgets; managers as well as the chief financial officer of nearly all health related agencies provide the techniques necessary to manage the budget. By balancing the budget the institution will likely be better organized for the financial guidelines, which are the company’s upcoming expenses. A few techniques that can improve balancing the budget are zero based, activity based, performance based, cost fluctuations and benchmarking. Zero based budgeting examines each individual expense within a business and justifies the necessity and expense of each. Activity based pricing is the accumulation of the operating cost records, which is also assigned to individual programs which include engineering. The performance dashboard applies the metrics of functioning and examines the reason behind...
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