mha646 discussion replies

1. Andrew

America is known for having liberty and options of choice. Imagine living in a place where there was only one type of sugar, oil, cell phone and bank. A person only had a choice to utilize one services and was unfortunately under the submission of the company that provide that service. These issues presented themselves in the late 1800s when the Sherman Act was pass. President Sherman Act were to prevent companies from joining to create price-fixing. This act allow companies to promote and sell the same product in different ways and prices which gave consumers options and was not bullied by companies. In 1913 President Wilson extended The act With the Federal Trade Commission Act, which prevented companies from trading goods deceitfully and Creating false advertisement to deceive consumers. This act is not only supported goods that may be bought in stores but also have strong involvement in real estate. It prevents sellers from upping price is in certain locations to attract certain customers. The Federal Trade Commission Act Prevents companies for making false claims and misrepresentation. Companies often create misleading prices, talking negative of competitive products which was often misleading and untrue, these companies also lied about certain endorsements. Without the Federal Trade Commission Act These practices would still be clouding the minds of Americans.

2. Gertrude

Hello All,

The Federal Trade Commission is a law enforcement agency charged by Congress with protecting the public against anticompetitive behavior and deceptive and unfair trade practices. The FTC’s antitrust arm, the Bureau of Competition, is responsible for investigating and prosecuting “unfair methods of competition” which violate the FTC Act. The FTC shares with the Department of Justice responsibility for prosecuting violations of the Sherman Act and the Clayton Act.

According to Showalter for many years’ healthcare services were considered intrastate commerce and thus excluded from Federal Antitrust statute till the late 70s. In the mid-1970’s, the FTC formed a division within the Bureau of Competition to investigate potential antitrust violations involving health care. The FTC Act applies to healthcare operations in many ways.

1. The FTC Act ensures that the healthcare antitrust laws are followed by healthcare organization.
2. The FTC Act levels the playing field ensuring that one healthcare facility is not becoming a monopoly in the sector.
3. It ensures that the healthcare operations are carrying out their duties with honesty.

In short, the FTC act can stop a business in its tracks. For instance, In April 2015, the FTC filed a stipulated permanent injunction in federal court settling charges that Cardinal Health, Inc. excluded potential entrants and maintained monopoly power in 25 local markets for the sale and distribution of low energy radiopharmaceuticals, by obtaining de facto exclusive rights to distribute an essential input, heart profusion agents, from the only two manufacturers. Under the terms of the final order and stipulated permanent injunction, Cardinal was required to disgorge its ill-gotten gains by paying $26.8 million into a fund for distribution to customers injured by its conduct.

3. Kyyohna

The geographic market of extensive healthcare facilities is associated with providing nursing services to patients locally, nationally, and internationally. Large companies stand a higher chance of thriving in the industry because they have a well-established market base when operating under fair competition. According to Mahmoud (2019), extensive healthcare facilities have the potential of meeting all the needs of patients regardless of their location or cultural diversity due to the availability of advanced equipment and level of expertise.

The product market is defined as a group of persons whose large health care facilities targets while offering its services. Mahmoud (2019) suggests well-established healthcare facilities work towards attracting patients who can afford the level of the services they provide. This type of product market should have the capability of meeting the cost of maintaining high-quality equipment applied.

New competitors experience a series of challenges while trying to establish roots in the market involving large healthcare facilities. Akande & Khadka (2018) opine that new competitors face shortcomings related to economies of scale, whereby they risk strong reaction from incumbents. The already established companies may opt to lower prices with a view of attracting customers who may want to seek services from the new entrant. Akande & Khadka (2018) further enlightens that new entrants find it challenging to source capital, which is a major obstacle for adapting to new markets. Again, the new entrants do not have the required capacity for differentiating products and brand identification.

4. Barbara

There are two aspects to defining a market for purposes of antitrust analysis. One must determine first the market for the product of interest and, second, the geographic market in which trade in the product occurs (R. Blair & D. Kaserman. 1985). For both product and geographic market definitions, two types of substitutability are relevant: demand substitutability and supply substitutability. Demand substitutability depends upon the extent to which consumers of the good or service can switch to substitutes for that good or service in response to a price increase. In contrast, supply substitutability depends upon the extent to which existing providers could expand output, and firms not currently producing the goods or services could enter the market for that good or service (R. Blair & D. Kaserman. 1985). In specific applications, the product market is defined first. Companies such as Mayo Clinic and John Hopkins must deal with the exterior barriers that could affect their companies and make them have a decline in the market. Barriers to entry are the economic term describing the existence of high start-up costs or other obstacles that prevent new competitors from quickly entering an industry or area of business. Barriers to entry benefit existing firms because they protect their revenues and profits. A significant barrier is expanding companies and higher budgets to help make their healthcare organizations be the top competitor. Each company, even in today’s time, is trying to expand and do it in a considerable way to where they are the only healthcare clinics and organizations around, and patients would have to come to them. But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave — just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20: 25-28). Knowing that God is literally in everything you decide to do, and that following him will lead you to great things is a blessing. You cannot have good expansion and growing healthcare organizations when no one is implementing biblical leadership perspectives.