This presentation was given at the ASCON XII Conference in Bangladesh in February 2009. The authors are from the Future Health Systems Research Programme Consortium (www.futurehealthsystems.org).
Call Girls Tirupati Just Call 8250077686 Top Class Call Girl Service Available
Health markets – their implications for the poor
1. ASCON XII
Future Health Systems
Special session:
Health markets – their implications
for the poor
1
2. Why markets may be bad for the
poor
Markets can worsen distributive outcomes and hence
produce or worsen health inequities
Markets for goods and services that embody expert
knowledge produce information asymmetry between
providers and clients. This can make clients vulnerable to
abuse of provider power and the poorer the client, the
more vulnerable
Health markets tend to be very segmented, with the poor
facing particular challenges in terms of gaining access to
affordable, competent care
The poor are the most likely to get goods and services
from unregulated markets, thereby getting the worst
deal
The poor often spend unnecessarily in these markets
2
3. How markets could help improve
access to health care for the poor
Markets can make available mass produced lower cost,
quality assured products (e.g. standard minor
procedures, basic health care commodities)
Markets can provide capital and ideas to drive innovation
more effectively
Market based services can respond more flexibly to
specific mass market niches that the poor engage with
Provided subsidies are well targeted or there is a third
party payer, private provision can complement public
services or fill service gaps
3
4. Important questions to ask about how a
health market affects the poor
Does it reduce information asymmetry and enable
patients to better assess whether the health services
they are acquiring are appropriate to their condition?
Does it align incentives better or worse with patient
welfare?
Does it relieve or exacerbate constraints on competence,
finance, and management?
Is there evidence that it results in better health-related
outcomes?
Does it provide benefits to the poor and/or does it
support the creation of sustainable arrangements to
meet the needs of the poor in the longer-term?
4
