Price setting in the Brazilian private health insurance sector.

Brazil's private health insurance market is the second largest in the world, behind only the United States, making it a valuable source of real-world evidence. This paper documents how physicians' inpatient reimbursement fees vary in the country and explores the relationship between these fees and the market share of health providers and health insurance companies. We implement a fixed-effects panel regression and take advantage of an unprecedented database that contains national administrative records of inpatient procedures paid by health insurance companies in 2016. We find a positive correlation between reimbursement for ICU procedures and provider market share. Conversely, we observe a negative correlation with insurers' market share. Additionally, we document substantial variation in procedure prices, both across and within Brazilian states, and observe that more competitive markets in Brazil tend to have higher population and GDP levels. Overall, our research enhances our understanding of the price setting dynamics of physician reimbursement fees in the context of a developing country. The insights gained from this study can assist policymakers in formulating appropriate regulations to ensure appropriate access to healthcare services.

Teleworking as a work modality: reflections from institutional analysis.

This opinion article addresses teleworking, which has gained momentum in Brazil due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The discussions arose from a course in the Professional Master's Degree in Health Services Management at a nursing school in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The authors raised teleworking-related questions, which are not only affecting their lives, but also the lives of workers in general, causing problems socially, economically, and related to workers' health. The reflections were drawn up using some concepts from institutional analysis. This article aimed to analyze teleworking as an analyzer of work in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. As teleworking rapidly took off, the benefits were envisioned, but the potential detriments of this type of work were not considered. As a result, many professionals working from home began to work in unsuitable conditions, lacking the necessary infrastructure and support to perform their activities, such as ergonomic furniture, equipment, materials, internet access, technical assistance, training, and support. However, teleworking should not be overlooked, as many workers have identified with this type of work and many organizations have benefited from it becoming institutionalized. However, we cannot remain "numb," waiting for some miraculous reversion to pre-pandemic conditions, in order to organize the new type of "normal" in the world of work in a less alienated way.

O presente artigo de reflexão aborda a modalidade de trabalho home office, que se intensificou no Brasil a partir do contexto da pandemia da covid-19. As reflexões foram originárias de discussões realizadas em uma disciplina do Curso de Mestrado Profissional em Gestão de Serviços de Saúde, de uma Escola de Enfermagem do estado de Minas Gerais. Os autores problematizaram questões relacionadas ao home office, que estão interferindo em suas vidas, mas, também, na vida dos trabalhadores de modo geral, ocasionando problemas sociais, econômicos e relativos à saúde do trabalhador. As reflexões foram elaboradas em articulação com alguns conceitos da Análise Institucional. O objetivo é analisar o home office considerando-o como analisador do trabalho no contexto da pandemia da covid-19. A partir da célere instalação do trabalho remoto, idealizou-se os benefícios e não foram considerados os possíveis prejuízos dessa modalidade de trabalho. Assim, diversos profissionais em home office passaram a trabalhar em condições inadequadas, sem a infraestrutura necessária e o suporte para a realização das atividades, como a disponibilização de mobiliário ergonômico, equipamentos, materiais, acesso à internet, assistência técnica, capacitações e acompanhamentos. Entretanto, não se pode desprezar a alternativa do home office, pois diversos trabalhadores se identificaram com essa modalidade de trabalho e muitas organizações se beneficiam com a sua institucionalização. Ao mesmo tempo, não se pode ficar "entorpecido", à espera de um milagroso regresso à realidade pré-pandêmica, para organizar de forma menos alienada o novo tipo de "normalidade" no mundo do trabalho.