The political process and the private health sector's role in Vietnam

Vietnam has experienced a period of economic and political transition from a command economy to one of market socialism. This transition has precipitated a shift in the policies concerning the private sector, as well as increased demand for services from the private health sector. The private sector has evolved, though more rapidly in the Ho Chi Minh City area, with the passing of laws and regulations concerning private practice. The policy maker's concern is to maintain the equity gains realized under the public health system while using the private sector growth to make improvements in the system's efficiency. The political process enabling expansion of the private health sector has been slow, and will continue to be measured as it seeks to create a national health system with a rational integration of the public and private sectors.     

Lumping and splitting: the health policy agenda in India

India's health system was designed in a different era, when expectations of the public and private sectors were quite different. India's population is also undergoing transitions in the demographic, epidemiologic and social aspects of health. Disparities in life expectancy, disease, access to health care and protection from financial risks have increased. These factors are challenging the health system to respond in new ways. The old approach to national health policies and programmes is increasingly inappropriate. By analyzing inter- and intra-state differences in contexts and processes, we argue that the content of national health policy needs to be more diverse and accommodating to specific states and districts. More 'splitting' of India's health policy at the state level would better address their health problems, and would open the way to innovation and local accountability. States further along the health transition would be able to develop policies to deal with the emerging epidemic of non-communicable diseases and more appropriate health financing systems. States early in the transition would need to focus on improving the quality and access of essential public health services, and empowering communities to take more ownership. Better 'lumping' of policy issues at the central level is also needed, but not in ways that have been done in the past. The central government needs to focus on overcoming the large inequalities in health outcomes across India, tackle growing challenges to health such as the HIV epidemic, and provide the much needed leadership on systemic issues such as the development of systems for quality assurance and regulation of the private sector. It also needs to support and facilitate states and districts to develop critical capacities rather than directly manage programmes. As India develops a more diverse set of state health policies, there will be more opportunities to learn what works in different policy environments.     

A cautious approach to privatization in Papua New Guinea

Health services in Papua New Guinea have historically been providedpredominantly by the public sector, in close partnership withthe churches, which are largely subsidized by government andconsequently tend to be considered as part of the public healthsector. There is a small, but growing private health sectorabout which little is known and which until recently had developedwithout involvement by the government. Indeed, little interestwas shown by health officials, apart from the occasional animosityof hospital staff to in-patients of private doctors, until thelate 1980s when attention was brought to the high levels ofattrition of doctors from the public to the private sector.Budgetary constraints felt by the health sector in 1986, asa result of a change in governmental policy, emphasized theneed to improve the financial information available to enablepolicy makers to optimize the use of the limited resources andseek alternative financing sources. One alternative, which hassince been the suject of greater interest, has been the potentialfor sharing the responsibility for health care provision withthe private sector. This paper draws together what is knownabout the private health care sector in Papua New Guinea anddiscusses the implications of private sector growth for furtherhealth planning and policy formulation.     

Improving public health system performance through multiorganizational partnerships

Public health activities in the United States are delivered through multiple public and private organizations that vary widely in their resources, missions, and operations. Without strong coordination mechanisms, these delivery arrangements may perpetuate large gaps, inequities, and inefficiencies in public health activities. We examined evidence and uncertainties concerning the use of partnerships to improve the performance of the public health system, with a special focus on partnerships between public health agencies and health care organizations. We found that the types of partnerships likely to have the largest and most direct effects on population health are among the most difficult, and therefore least prevalent, forms of collaboration. High opportunity costs and weak and diffuse participation incentives hinder partnerships that focus on expanding effective prevention programs and policies. Targeted policy actions and leadership strategies are required to illuminate and enhance partnership incentives.     

Policies alone are not enough: Workplace health development in the public,private and voluntary sectors

A 2001 survey of public (n?=?28), private (n?=?113) and voluntary sector (n?=?64) workplaces in Sefton, Merseyside indicated that there were significantly different levels of health-related policy provision across the three sectors, with the public sector having the highest level of provision (7.18 policies on average), followed by the voluntary (5.09 policies on average) and the private sector (3.94 policies on average). Policies already in place were mostly based around health and safety (89%), smoking (80%), sickness absenteeism (68%) and manual handling (49%). Workplaces reported that in order to benefit their employees’ health they wanted to improve: the physical work environment (38%); communications (31%); job content/organization (30%) and wage levels (29%). In addition, they wanted to develop stress management (51%) and family-friendly (25%) policies. The major perceived barriers to implementing these policies were: lack of time/monetary resources (70%); not having the skills/expertise (37%); knowing which issues are priorities (25%); and knowing where to go to for help (17%). In order to achieve this, workplaces would like support in the form of: advice/information (63%); free health and safety checks (52%); training courses (49%) and monetary subsidies (49%). This study uniquely compares the public, private and voluntary sectors, highlighting that the sectors with the most health policies in place (public and voluntary) are also the sectors with the greatest number of reported difficulties, e.g. absenteeism, recruitment and retention. Recommendations from this study are that a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to health promotion would be inadequate to bring about changes in practice; that health promotion campaigns should focus on addressing the contextual difficulties, e.g. lack of resources, facing the voluntary and public sector, rather than on solely developing policy provision; and that information and advice for workplaces should be tailored to this end.     

Petro-state constraints on health policy: guidelines for workable reform in Venezuela

This article reviews the performance of the Venezuelan health care sector and suggests guidelines for workable health policy under difficult conditions. Two special circumstances constrain policy options. First, Venezuelans share a traditional value, solidarity, which includes a strong desire for equity. Reforms must comply with this norm to succeed. Second, foreign sales of state-controlled oil constitute the bulk of the government budget and the gross domestic product (GDP). Petroleum market fluctuations expose the country to extreme economic cycles. In response, policy making and stakeholders adopt a rentier attitude, focusing on preserving or enlarging entitlements to government oil monies. The side effects of this largesse include poor productivity, a weak private sector, a widespread sense of entitlement without accountability, and a crippled state which controls most of the available resources yet is unable to effectively tax, regulate, steer the economy, or pursue long-term policies. The health care sector shares these problems. As a result, Venezuela's health systems are fragmented, poorly coordinated, excessively centralized, inequitable, and ineffective. Policies to improve public health and public and private medical care must take into account these constraints.     

The historical development of human resources policies in the health sector of four Caribbean territories: imitated or created?

Health systems are labour intensive, dependent on a mix of professionals to provide health care in both public and private sectors. In this paper, we explore the historical development of human resources, focusing on doctors and nurses, in four Caribbean territories-the Bahamas, Martinique, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago. All these territories have faced issues around the out-migration of doctors and nurses and tensions between public health, hospital services and private sector policies. Early policies to increase the number of nurses and doctors were costly, because they were implemented against a tide of increasing outward migration. Both push and pull factors were evident. Human resources policies focused on ways to counter pull factors-such as introducing regional medical training-but neglected push factors. These began to be addressed from the 1980s on, although tensions between public health, hospital services and private sector policies led to resistance and conflicts in attitudes to reform among health professionals. Policy responses were the product of many influences, and it is too simple to conclude they were either imported from abroad or internally generated. However, it is clear that in all four territories the medical profession played a dominant role in human resources policy development either directly or indirectly.     

An evaluation of precaution-based approaches as EMF policy tools in community environments.

This paper explores the use of precaution-based approaches as policy tools when responding to concerns about power-frequency electric and magnetic fields (EMF) in community environments. The combination of public concern and scientific uncertainty about potential health impacts from exposure to EMF challenges society to adopt EMF policies that balance the benefits of electric power against the possibility that some aspect of the use of electricity may be harmful. Inappropriate policy responses can undermine the economics of society's use of electricity and have other adverse consequences on public health. These adverse consequences result from the inappropriate diversion of scarce public and private resources. Precaution-based approaches are rooted in individual concepts of common sense and can be an effective component of a comprehensive set of EMF policy options. Precaution-based approaches do not replace science-based policy options and should only be used when the available science-based guidelines are not applicable. The application of these approaches should balance the real and expected costs and benefits of taking or not taking action. Given our current scientific knowledge, actions taken to reduce EMF exposure should necessarily be low cost because the expected benefits are uncertain. Society also needs to avoid adopting EMF policies that could incur high costs from distorting resources from other, more important, personal and public health priorities.     

Health services financing in Greece: a role for private health insurance

Private health insurance can play a significant role in the financing and delivery of health services in relatively undeveloped health systems which suffer from limited public expenditures, resource shortages, and quality of care problems. Research results, however, indicate that private health insurance in Greece has not yet assumed that role. The rapid increase of private health insurance was the result of underfinancing by the public sector and restrictive policies for the private sector. The private sector, however, largely financed by private health insurance, found alternative investment and profit opportunities, which, unfortunately, did not improve health system microeconomic efficiency. In this paper we propose that a way of cooperation could exist between the public sector and private health insurance, which would improve public health services provision and the overall technical, allocative and dynamic efficiency of the health system.     

Efficiency and quality in the public and private sectors in Senegal

It is often argued that the private sector is more efficient than the public sector in the production of health services, and that government reliance on private provision would help improve the efficiency and equity of public spending in health. A review of the literature, however, shows that there is little evidence to support these statements. A study of government and non-governmental facilities was undertaken in Senegal, taking into account case mix, input prices, and quality of care, to examine relative efficiency in the delivery of health services. The study revealed that private providers are highly heterogeneous, although they tend to offer better quality services. A specific and important group of providers--Catholic health posts--were shown to be significantly more efficient than public and other private facilities in the provision of curative and preventive ambulatory services at high levels of output. Policies to expand the role of the private sector need to take into account variations in types of providers, as well as evidence of both high and low quality among them. In terms of public sector efficiency, findings from the study affirm others that indicate drug policy reform to be one of the most important policy interventions that can simultaneously improve efficiency, quality and effectiveness of care. Relationships that this study identified between quality and efficiency suggest that strategies to improve quality can increase efficiency, raise demand for services, and thereby expand access.     

International trade in health services and the medical industrial complex: implications for national health systems

Health services have increasingly proven to be an innovative sector, gaining prominence in the medical industrial complex through expansion to public and international markets. International trade can foster economic development and redirect the resources and infrastructure available for healthcare in different countries in favorable or unfavorable directions. Wherever private providers play a significant role in government-funded healthcare, GATS commitments may restrict health policy options in subscribing countries. Systematic information on the impacts of electronic health services, medical tourism, health workers' migration, and foreign direct investment is needed on a case-by-case basis to build evidence for informed decision-making, so as to maximize opportunities and minimize risks of GATS commitments.     

From cooperation to competition in national health systems--and back?: impact on professional ethics and quality of care

Ethical behaviour in health workers is the jewel in the crown of health services. Health system policies need to nurture a professional service ethic. The primary health care policy envisioned a national health system led by the public sector and based on a philosophy of cooperation. A common theme of 'health sector reform' in OECD countries, introduced in the context of neoliberalism, has been the use of 'managed competition' to increase efficiency. Some countries that flirted with health system competition have returned to cooperation. Market relationships tend to be oppositional and to stimulate self-seeking behaviour. Health system relationships should encourage patient and community centred behaviour. The World Bank and bilateral donors have exported health sector reform theories from the north to the south, involving privatization and marketization policies. This is despite the lack of evidence on their desirability or feasibility of implementing them. Private health care has increased in many developing countries, more as a result of economic crisis and liberalization than specific health sector reforms. Much of this private practice is unlicensed and unregulated, and informal privatization has had a damaging effect on health worker ethics. The lead policy should be reconstruction of the public health system, involving decentralization, democratization and improved management. Commonsense contracting of an existing private sector is different from a policy of proactive privatization and marketization. Underlying the two approaches is whether health care should be viewed as a human right best served by socialized provision or a private good requiring governments only to correct market failures and ensure basic care for the poor. It is a matter of politics, not economics.     

The private/public mix in health care in India

Private hospitals and private medical practitioners play a significantpart in delivering health care services in India. As the demandfor health care has increased, institutions in this sector haveexpanded widely in both urban and rural areas. The relationshipbetween patient and private practitioner considerably influencesthe perceived and actual needs about health care. This relationshipis expected to play an important role in the control of diseasepatterns and management. However, the developments in this sectorhave prompted concern about the efficiency of resources, equityand access to facilities, and the availability of financingmechanisms to support private health care. Also, the efficiencywith which the resources are used in this sector has directbearing on the cost and quality of services. The existence ofthese health care institutions therefore has profound implicationsfor the present character of the Indian health care system,and its future course. The objectives of the present study are to review the role ofthe private health care sector in India and the policy concernsit engenders. The discussion suggests that policy makers inIndia should take serious note of the growing influence of theprivate sector in providing health care in India. Policy interventionsin health should not ignore their existence and this sectorshould be explicitly involved in the health management process.It is argued that regulatory and supportive policy interventionsare inevitable to promote this sector's viable and appropriatedevelopment.     

中国社会办医的现状分析

通过系统分析中国社会办医的现状,为进一步促进社会办医提出政策建议。根据国内外文献,社会办医疗机构和公立医疗机构在医疗费用和服务质量方面并没有显著差异,并且由于社会办医促进市场开放与公平竞争,公立医院和整个医疗卫生服务市场的绩效也因此有所提高（正向溢出效应）。尽管如此,由于中国长期计划经济自上而下的资源配置与行政干预,社会办医长期未能得到健康发展,主要政策障碍包括准入方面存在隐形限制、经营方面缺乏税收鼓励、用人方面缺少优质医师资源。因此,建议调整区域卫生规划的功能从“封顸”向“兜底”过渡,尽快制定有利于社会办医的土地政策和人才政策,进一步完善相关配套措施,促进社会办医在中国的健康发展。     

Household utilization and expenditure on private and public health services in Vietnam

The private provision of health services in Vietnam was legalized in 1989 as one of the country's means to mobilize resources and improve efficiency in the health system. Ten years after its legalization, the private sector has widely expanded its activities and become an important provider of health services for the Vietnamese people. However, little is known about its contribution to the overall objectives of the health system in Vietnam. This paper assesses the role of the private health care provider by examining utilization patterns and financial burden for households of private, as compared with public, services. We found that the private sector provided 60% of all outpatient contacts in Vietnam. There was no difference by education, sex or place of residence in the use of private ambulatory health care. Although there was evidence suggesting that rich people use private care more than the poor, this finding was not consistent across all income groups. The private sector served young children in particular. Also, people in households with several sick members at the same time relied more on private than public care, while those with severe illnesses tended to use less private care than public. The financial burden for households from private health care services was roughly a half of that imposed by the public providers. Expenditure on drugs accounted for a substantial percentage of household expenditure in general and health care expenditure in particular. These findings call for a prompt recognition of the private sector as a key player in Vietnam's health system. Health system policies should mobilize positive private sector contributions to health system goals where possible and reduce the negative effects of private provision development.     

The economy and health

The interrelationships between sectors in an economy (especially between the health sector, on one hand, and the rest of the economy, on the other hand) are often ignored when many developing countries strive to achieve some general socioeconomic as well as specific sectoral goals. Macroeconomic policies adopted in developing countries, especially in Sub-Sahara Africa, to deal with the economic crisis failed to take adequate measures to protect the health of the people. Policy makers and the planners have contributed to the problems of the health sector by not devising necessary built-in measures to mitigate the negative impact of macroeconomic and sectoral policies on health. The paper attempts to bring into focus the linkages between the economy and the health sector and to proffer to policy makers and planners, especially in Sub-Sahara Africa, what should be done in future to minimize the negative impact of macro and sectoral policies on health.     

Hospital payment systems: will payers like the future better than the past?

Unsustainable health care cost growth has forced payers to reexamine goals for hospital payment systems. Employers want simplicity and transparency, with comparative performance data available in the public domain. Insurers favor simplicity but prefer to keep the analysis of comparative performance data and pricing private. Thirty-five pay-for-performance experiments have been devised in the private sector, to reward hospitals for higher quality and move toward more effective payment systems. Definitive results are not yet known, and caveats remain, but early signs are promising. We develop three scenarios for future hospital payment systems and identify policy actions to improve outcomes.     

Implementation of pro‐poor exemption policy in Tanzania: policy versus reality

Like many other African countries, Tanzania has been implementing user fee policy in its health sector since the early 1990s. Accompanying user fee, mechanisms were designed that exempted the poor and vulnerable groups of the society from paying user charges. Although studies on the implementation of exemption policies in Tanzania exist, very few have documented the actual process of translating exemption policies into actions—the process of implementation. Drawing from policy analysis and implementation theories, this paper documents the implementation of the waiver (need‐based exemptions) policy in Tanzania. The findings indicate that waiver systems, while potentially effective in principle, were ineffective in implementation. Lack of specification of criteria by which the poor could be identified made policy implementers at different levels to implement the policy in their own style. Low level of public awareness about the existence of waiver mechanisms hindered the poor to demand exemptions. Furthermore, fear of loss of revenue at the health facilities and ineffective enforcement mechanisms provided little incentives for local government leaders and health workers to communicate the policy to beneficiaries. It is concluded from this study that to better achieve the objectives of the pro‐poor exemption policy, it is important to engage policy implementers more actively in the management and implementation of policies. Additionally, it is imperative to understand the behaviour and practices of policy implementers, especially district health managers, health workers and village and ward leaders, who may react negatively to new policies and implement the policies in ways contrary to what policy makers had intended. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does federal health care policy influence switching between the public and private sectors in individuals?

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine if changes in Australian Federal health policy have influenced individual behaviour regarding utilisation of private health insurance in Western Australia. METHOD: The WA Data Linkage System was used to extract all hospital morbidity records in Western Australia from 1980 to 2001. For each individual, episodes were grouped into hospital couplets classified according to the mix of public and privately insured events. Logistic regression was used to estimate the likelihood of switching towards or away from the private sector, according to the time between episodes in each of five health care policy eras. RESULTS: The odds of a switch away from the private sector increased by 29% with each additional year between episodes, while the odds of a switch towards the private sector increased by 15% per intra-couplet year. In those with a private first episode the odds of switching decreased approximately exponentially across the five eras whereas the odds of switching in those with a public first episode stabilised after 1985. In the last era (1999-2001) the odds of switching away from the private sector reduced substantially. CONCLUSION: Our analysis suggests that the recent policies supporting PHI (30% rebate and Lifetime Health Cover) appear to have been effective at modifying individual behaviour to reduce the drift away from the private sector. However, the reported increases in utilisation of PHI were only partially explained by switching of existing demand in patients who had been previously hospitalised as public patients, suggesting that the policy reforms had generated, rather than merely shifted, demand for health care. This finding has significant policy implications for Australia.     

Lebanon's health care policy: a case study in the evolution of a health system under stress

Lebanon's experience in the development of its health care system over the last century is reviewed; inasmuch as experiences can be generalizable, the case of Lebanon reflects the attempts of middle-income countries to balance the public and private sectors' roles in health care. Lebanon's health care system followed a predictable trend that was accelerated and intensified by the civil disturbances during the past decade. Its main feature has been the absence of a coherent and sustained health policy that promotes a stable and long-lasting relationship between the public and the private sectors in health. The role of the State has been most effective during periods of political, social and economic stability, when serious planning efforts could be undertaken and resultant policies be implemented. An effective partnership between the State and the private sector is recommended for the reconstruction of Lebanon's health care system, as well as for other countries with a strong private sector involvement in health care.