OBJECTIVES Japan has a universal healthcare system, and this paper describes the reality of the healthcare services provided, as well as current issues with the system. METHODS Academic, government, and press reports on Japanese healthcare systems and healthcare guidelines were reviewed. RESULTS The universal healthcare system of Japan is considered internationally to be both low-cost and e...

Healthcare spending will continue to rise, not only because of inflationary drivers but as a result of growing recognition by policymakers, worldwide, that improved health is inextricably linked to greater national wealth. Keeping the universal healthcare model throughout the European Union (EU) will require rationing of services and consolidation of healthcare facilities, as public resources f...

this is a commentary on gilbert and colleagues’ (1) paper on morality and markets in the national health service (nhs). morality and values are not ephemeral qualities and universal healthcare is not simply an aspiration; it has to be enshrined in law. the creation of the uk nhs in 1948 was underpinned by core legal duties which required a system of public funding and delivery to follow. the mo...

Primary healthcare is considered an essential feature of health systems to secure population health and contain costs of healthcare while universal health coverage forms a key to secure access to care. This paper is based on a workshop at the 2016 World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) South Asia regional conference, where the health systems of Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri L...

the world health organization’s (who’s) world health report 2010, “health systems financing, the path to universal coverage,” promoted universal health coverage (uhc) as an aspirational objective for country health systems. yet, in addition to the dimensions of services and coverage, distribution of coverage in the population, and financial risk protection highlighted by the report, the conside...