O cial development assistance (ODA) gross disbursements amounted to US$ 81.88 million on average per year channeling close to half of the disbursements into disaster prevention and preparedness and ood prevention and control (48.7 percent). Over the period 2002 to 2011, the Government of the Philippines’ water-related investments accounted for an estimated 3.0 percent of total government expend...

BACKGROUND Most of the about 140 million informal sector workers in urban China do not have health insurance. A 1998 central government policy leaves it to the discretion of municipal governments to offer informal sector workers in cities voluntary participation in a social health insurance for formal sector workers, the so-called 'basic health insurance' (BHI). METHODS We used the contingent...

The health and social care workforce is now the largest segment of the Australian workforce with over 1.4million workers. In a personnel-intensive industry such as health,workforce is themost important single issue to address as we look to the future of our health system. Driven as it is by the increasing demand of chronic disease, ageing and a population that has a voracious appetite for healt...

OBJECTIVE To identify the effects of decentralization on health financing and governance policies in Mexico from the perspective of users and providers. METHODS A cross-sectional study was carried out in four states that were selected according to geopolitical and administrative criteria. Four indicators were assessed: changes and effects on governance, financing sources and funds, the final ...

OBJECTIVE China's ongoing new health reform aims to reduce individual out-of-pocket (OOP) payments for healthcare services. The aim of this article is to analyse the impact of this reform and to draw policy implications. METHODS Data are retrieved from the relevant government publications. Polynomial regression models are used to predict future health expenditures. An extensive sensitivity an...

The question of whether foreign aid results in recipient governments spending less on health is an enduring concern in global health. In separate analyses, Farag et al. and Lu et al., which included members of our group (CL, CM), found compelling evidence of ‘‘aid displacement,’’ meaning a substitution between development assistance for health from foreign donors and health expenditure financed...

Background: A dramatic increase in healthcare expenditures is a major health policy concern worldwide. Understanding factors that underlie the growth in healthcare expenditures is essential to assist decision-makers in finding best policies to manage healthcare costs. We aimed to examine the determinants of healthcare spending in Iran over the periods of 1978-2011. Methods: A time series ana...