The Policy Process
The Policy Process: Part I
LaSantae Drew
HCS/455
May 20, 2013
The policy process is an ongoing event according to Kronenfeld (1997). When a policy is formulated there are two major parts; agenda setting and development of legislation. After these stages then the implementation stage begins. The way issues emerge can bring public awareness to a situation, such as the need for healthcare reform in the United States and eliminating the uninsured population. There are various stages of the policy process required to address this issue which include the formulation stage, legislative stage and the implementation stage.
Policy formulation begins with problems, possible solutions and political circumstances (Kingdon, 2009). Identifying problems and agenda setting is the first step in the policy formulation process. The problem in this scenario is that 46 million Americans are without health insurance in the United States (Census Bureau, 2008). With the number of uninsured American’s, policy formulation is critical; issues need to be straightforward, who is involved in the process, and what needs to be done has to be clearly defined in order for policy to be considered at this stage (Fafard, 2008). The Institute of Medicine reported that between 2000 and 2006, 137,000 American’s died due to lack of health insurance (Dorn, 2008); this number includes 22,000 alone in 2006. This is evidence enough for health reform to be on a political agenda for policy formulation and for a proposal to be written for debate and approved by federal Congress making it law.
During the legislative stage a policy is assigned letters by the clerk; for example, H.R., and then followed by the legislative number. Once the number has been assigned, the policy will be referred to as the assigned number (Johnson, 2003). Understanding the legislative branch is important because each branch of the government has specific duties. The main responsibility of the legislative branch is to confirm and
LaSantae Drew
HCS/455
May 20, 2013
The policy process is an ongoing event according to Kronenfeld (1997). When a policy is formulated there are two major parts; agenda setting and development of legislation. After these stages then the implementation stage begins. The way issues emerge can bring public awareness to a situation, such as the need for healthcare reform in the United States and eliminating the uninsured population. There are various stages of the policy process required to address this issue which include the formulation stage, legislative stage and the implementation stage.
Policy formulation begins with problems, possible solutions and political circumstances (Kingdon, 2009). Identifying problems and agenda setting is the first step in the policy formulation process. The problem in this scenario is that 46 million Americans are without health insurance in the United States (Census Bureau, 2008). With the number of uninsured American’s, policy formulation is critical; issues need to be straightforward, who is involved in the process, and what needs to be done has to be clearly defined in order for policy to be considered at this stage (Fafard, 2008). The Institute of Medicine reported that between 2000 and 2006, 137,000 American’s died due to lack of health insurance (Dorn, 2008); this number includes 22,000 alone in 2006. This is evidence enough for health reform to be on a political agenda for policy formulation and for a proposal to be written for debate and approved by federal Congress making it law.
During the legislative stage a policy is assigned letters by the clerk; for example, H.R., and then followed by the legislative number. Once the number has been assigned, the policy will be referred to as the assigned number (Johnson, 2003). Understanding the legislative branch is important because each branch of the government has specific duties. The main responsibility of the legislative branch is to confirm and
References: Byat, M. (n.d.). a Guide to Managing Public Policy. Retrieved from http://books.google.com Census Bureau (August 2008) Dorn, S. (January 2008). Uninsured and dying. Make that 22,000 uninsured deaths. Retrieved March 21, 2009 from http://www.pnhp.org/news/2008/january/make_that_22000_uni.php Fafard, P. (May 2008). National Collaborating Center for Healthy Public Policy. Retrieved from http://www.cprn.org Johnson, C Kingdon, J. W. (2009). Policy Formulation. Retrieved from http://www.brainmass.com Kronenfeld, J