Explain the Reasons for the Significant Escalation in Health-Care Costs

question 8

Essay

Explain the reasons for the significant escalation in health-care costs over the last several decades.

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Definitions:

Sustainable Operating Earnings

The portion of a company's profit that is expected to continue in the future, excluding any one-time items or unusual income.

Big Bath Items

Large and often one-time charges taken by a company to write off or write down the value of assets, or to provide for expected future liabilities, sometimes used to manage earnings.

Restructuring

A process of reorganizing a company's structure, operations, or finances with the goal of increasing efficiency or to prepare the business for a sale, merger, or change in strategy.

GAAP

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, a set of accounting standards and practices formally established to bring consistency to financial reporting.