Consumers and Their Demand for Healthcare

Demand by definition is an economic concept that describes consumer's desire to pay a price for goods or services. If all other factors are constant, a rise in the price of a good or service will reduce demand and a decrease in the price of a good or service will increase demand [1]. Healthcare demand is gradually rising. According to Dixon-Fyle and Kowallik [2], many countries will spend more than 20% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on health care by 2050. Two main contributors to this growth are the increasing prevalence of preventable illness and the suboptimal use of healthcare resources. These factors are influenced by choices consumers make. For instance, obesity is on the rise in the United States. Obesity is preventable and can increase the risk of diabetes, stroke, and heart disease. Some patients do not take appropriate control of their health and seek treatment when conditions become chronic. The lack of initiate to live a healthy life and prevent chronic illness such as obesity has led to misuse of the healthcare system, hence, increased cost [2]. This article will review how demand for healthcare differs from demand for other services and the reasons why consumers make irrational decisions in their healthcare choices.