ETHICS, ECONOMICS, AND THE EROSION OF PHYSICIAN AUTHORITY - A LEADERSHIP ROLE FOR NURSES

The emergence of managed care raises new concerns about the ethics of health care financing and its impact on service delivery. The current outcry, however, fails to recognize that American health care financin g has presented serious ethical dilemmas for at least 50 years. What f ollows is a historic overview of American health care financing, contr asted with current challenges. The intersection between ethics, econom ics, professionalism, and public authority is explicated, with a criti cal leader/advocate role for nurses presented.