Managed competition in Florida health care system: An implementation study

The study examines the implementation of managed competition in Florida as a legislated, decentralized, public-private partnership having the characteristics of a network. The policy subsystem model of Milward and Wamsley was used to examine the network, the network structure, the reasons and rewards for participation, and the normative theory that holds the CHPA network together. A snowballing interview procedure was used to reconstruct the unit of analysis and data were analyzed using grounded theory (open coding, axial coding, selective coding), descriptive statistics, and a matrix for network analysis. Findings on network structure, organizational and/or individual roles and participation provide public administration with important clues on how to survive in an increasingly networked world. In addition, the study demonstrates the usefulness of the policy subsystem model in examining public-private partnerships.