BACKGROUND In India, Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and injuries account for an estimated 62% of the total age-standardized burden of forgone Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). Public and private financing of clinical services to reduce the NCD burden is a major challenge. METHODS We used National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) survey data from 1995-96 and 2004 covering nearly 200 t...

HIGHLIGHTS Since the geopolitical developments of 1989, former centrally planned economies of Eastern Europe followed distinctively different pathways in national pharmaceutical expenditure evolution as compared to their free market Western European counterparts.Long term spending on pharmaceuticals expressed as percentage of total health expenditure was falling in free market economies as of 1...

Health sector reform is defined as sustained, purposeful change to improve the efficiency, equity and effectiveness of the health sector. Any change is not reform. Changes that affect at least two of the elements namely; health financing, expenditure, organization regulation and consumer behavior justify to be called as health sector reforms. Suggested reforms before introduction must undergo a...

Understanding the flow of resources at the country level to reproductive health is essential for effective financing of this key component of health. This paper gives a comprehensive picture of the allocation of resources for reproductive health in Kenya and the challenges faced in the resource-tracking process. Data are drawn from Kenyan budget estimates, reproductive health accounts, and the ...

This paper presents the arguments in favor of government intervention in financing and regulation of health in Brazil. It describes the organizational arrangement of the Brazilian health system, for the purpose of reflection on the austerity agenda proposed for the country. Based on the literature in health economics, it discusses the hypothesis that the health sector in Brazil functions under ...

INTRODUCTION A national health account (NHA) provides a systematic approach to mapping the flow of health sector funds within a specified health system over a defined time period. This article attempts to present a profile of health system financing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates using data from NHAs, and to compare the functional structures of financing schemes in Dubai with schemes in Qatar a...

BACKGROUND As population and access to information increases, so does the demand for health services. Unfortunately, many people who genuinely require these services do not usually have access to them. To increase access, various financing options have been used. Despite this, maternal morbidity and mortality rates remain high and spending is still largely out of pocket. This study assesses mat...

Mr. Chairman and members of the committees: We are pleased to be here today to discuss alternative financing for surface transportation infrastructure projects. As Congress considers reauthorizing the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) in 2003, it does so in the face of a continuing need for the nation to invest in its surface transportation infrastructure and at a time whe...

We study the effect of asset liquidity (“tangibility”) on firm policies in the presence of financing constraints. We do so in a real options framework that allows for the simultaneous determination of investment and financing. In the presence of financing imperfections, firms that operate more tangible assets have larger credit capacity. By expanding the firm’s capital base, the investment proc...

This document presents the results from the applied research in health care financing in over 40 countries around the developing world conducted by the Health Financing and Sustainability (HFS) Project. It describes the conceptual framework and outlines for the agenda for the research. It presents the research results, summarizes the findings and policy recommendations, and points to areas for ...