Getting the Deal Through - Life Sciences in 25 Jurisdictions Worldwide 2013

By Kenneth R. Meyer, John Patrick Oroho, and Brian P. Sharkey

The health-care system in the United States has evolved over the past 60 years through incremental public policy initiatives. These public policy changes mainly have been on the federal level. The federal government is the largest single provider of healthcare services in the United States. In 2010, there were approximately 4.4 million federal government employees, including temporary employees. The Federal Labor Department estimates that the total number of federal employees in 2011 decreased by 1.3 per cent, or 57,000 people. The Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program is administered through the Office of Personnel Management and manages the health insurance and retirement benefits for federal employees, retirees and their survivors. These employees have the widest selection of health plans in the country.