History of the Role of Government in Health Care
Social regulation focuses on organizations’ actions, such as those in the healthcare industry, that impact an individual’s safety. Social regulations focus on protecting individuals as employees and consumers ( Carroll & Buchholtz, 2015 ). These types of regulations are common in the U.S. healthcare system. The healthcare industry claims it is the most regulated industry in the world. It is important to mention that in addition to governmental regulations, there are nongovernmental regulations of U.S. health care by accrediting bodies such as the Joint Commission, which began over 80 years ago and accredits nearly 21,000 healthcare organizations and programs ( The Joint Commission, 2016 ). However, regulatory oversight is mainly handled at the federal, state, and local governmental levels.