Health Care

Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Health Care shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Health Care offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Health Care at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Health Care? Wrong! If the Health Care is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Health Care then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Health Care? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Health Care and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Health Care wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Health Care then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Health Care site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Health Care, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Health Care, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

in a hospital. German engraving from 1682.Health care, or healthcare, is the prevention, treatment, and management of illness and the preservation of mental and physical well being through the services offered by the Medicine, nursing, and allied health professions. According to the World Health Organisation, health care embraces all the goods and services designed to promote health, including “preventive, curative and palliative interventions, whether directed to individuals or to populations”. The organised provision of such services may constitute a health care system. This can include a specific governmental organisation such as, in the UK, the National Health Service or a cooperation across the National Health Service and Social Services as in Shared Care. Before the term "health care" became popular, English-speakers referred to medicine or to the health sector and spoke of the treatment and prevention of illness and disease.

In most developed countries and many developing countries health care is provided to everyone regardless of their ability to pay. The National Health Service in the United Kingdom was the world's first universal health care system provided by government. It was established in 1948 by Clement Atlee's Labour party (UK) government. Alternatively, compulsory government funded health insurance with nominal fees can be provided, as with Italy, which, according to the World Health Organisation, has the second-best health system in the world. Health Care in Italy Other examples are Medicare (Australia) in Australia, established in the 1970s by the Australian Labor Party government, and by the same name Medicare (Canada) in Canada, established between 1966 and 1984. Universal health care contrasts to the systems like health care in the United States or South Africa, though South Africa is one of the many countries attempting health care reform.Physicians for a National Health Program "International Health Systems".

Industry The health care industry is considered an industry or profession which includes peoples exercise of skill or judgment or the providing of a service related to the preservation or improvement of the health of individuals or the treatment or care of individuals who are injured, sick, disabled, or infirm. The delivery of modern health care depends on an expanding group of trained professionals coming together as an interdisciplinary team.Princeton University. (2007). health profession. Retrieved June 17, 2007, from http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=health%20professionUnited States Department of Labor. (2007, February 27). Health Care Industry Information. Retrieved June 17, 2007, from http://www.doleta.gov/BRG/Indprof/Health.cfm

The health care industry is one of the world's largest and fastest-growing industries. From the Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation Consuming over 10 percent of gross domestic product of most developed nations, health care can form an enormous part of a country's Economic system. In 2003, health care costs paid to hospitals, physicians, nursing homes, diagnostic laboratories, pharmacy, medical device manufacturers and other components of the health care system, consumed 15.3 percent From Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services of the GDP of the United States, the largest of any country in the world. For the United States, the health share of gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to hold steady in 2006 before resuming its historical upward trend, reaching 19.6 percent of GDP by 2016. "The Not So Short Introduction to Health Care in US", by Nainil C. Chheda, published in February 2007, Accessed February 26, 2007. In 2001, for the OECD countries the average was 8.4 percent OECD data with the United States (13.9%), Switzerland (10.9%), and Germany (10.7%) being the top three.

Systems Purely private enterprise health care systems are comparatively rare. Where they exist, it is usually for a comparatively well-off subpopulation in a poorer country with a poorer standard of health care–for instance, private clinics for a small, wealthy expatriate population in an otherwise poor country. But there are countries with a majority-private health care system with residual public service (see Medicare (United States), Medicaid). The other major models are public insurance systems. A Social security health care model is where workers and their families are insured by the State. A Publicly funded health care model is where the Residencys of the country are insured by the State. Within this branch is Single-payer health care, which describes a type of financing system in which a single entity, typically a government run organisation, acts as the administrator (or "payer") to collect all health care fees, and pay out all health care costs.Physicians for a National Health Program. "What is Single Payer?". Some advocates of universal health care assert that single-payer systems save money that could be used directly towards health care by reducing administrative waste. In practice this means that the government collects taxes from the public, businesses, etc., creates an entity to administer the supply of health care and then pays health care professionals. Harry Wachtel estimate a single payer universal healthcare system will actually save money through reduced bureaucratic administration costs.Massachusetts Nursing Association. "Single Payer Health Care: A Nurses Guide to Single Payer Reform." Social health insurance is where the whole population or most of the population is a member of a sickness insurance company. Most health services are provided by private enterprises which act as contractors, billing the government for patient care. CBC Health Care Private verses Public In almost every country with a government health care system a parallel private system is allowed to operate. This is sometimes referred to as two-tier health care. The scale, extent, and funding of these private systems is very variable.

A traditional view is that improvements in health result from advancements in medical science. The medical model of health focuses on the eradication of illness through diagnosis and effective treatment. In contrast, the social model of health places emphasis on changes that can be made in society and in people's own lifestyles to make the population healthier. It defines illness from the point of view of the individual's functioning within their society rather than by monitoring for changes in biological or physiological signs.

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialised United Nations agency which acts as a coordinator and researcher for public health around the world. Established on 7 April 1948, and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health Organization, which had been an agency of the League of Nations. The WHO's constitution states that its mission "is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health." Its major task is to combat disease, especially key infectious diseases, and to promote the general health of the peoples of the world. Examples of its work include years of fighting smallpox. In 1979 the WHO declared that the disease had been eradicated - the first disease in history to be completely eliminated by deliberate human design. The WHO is nearing success in developing vaccines against malaria and schistosomiasis and aims to eradicate polio within the next few years. The organization has already endorsed the world's first official HIV/AIDS Toolkit for Zimbabwe from October 3 2006, making it an international standard.http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-10/04/content_5167991.htm

The WHO is financed by contributions from member states and from donors. In recent years the WHO's work has involved more collaboration, currently around 80 such partnerships, with Non-governmental organizations and the pharmaceutical industry, as well as with foundations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation. Voluntary contributions to the WHO from national and local governments, foundations and NGOs, other UN organizations, and the private sector (including pharmaceutical companies), now exceed that of assessed contributions (dues) from its 193 member nations.

Regions

Oceania Australia and New Zealand Ministry of Health both have publicly funded health care systems, though under the Conservative government in Australia, there has been new funding and incentives for people who pay for private health insurance.

Australia Medicare was introduced by the Gough Whitlam Labor Government on 1 July 1975 through the Health Insurance Act 1973. The Australian Senate rejected the changes multiple times and they were passed only after a joint sitting after the 1974 Australian electoral system#Double dissolutions election. Yet Medicare has been supported by subsequent governments and became a key feature of Australia’s public policy landscape. The exact structure of Medicare, in terms of the size of the rebate to doctors and hospitals and the way it has administered, has varied over the years. The original Medicare program proposed a 1.35% levy (with low income exemptions) but these bills were rejected by the Senate, and so Medicare was originally funded from general taxation. In October 1976, the Fraser Government introduced a 2.5% levy. The program is now nominally funded by an income tax surcharge known as the Medicare levy, which is currently set at 1.5% with exemptions for low income earners. In practice the levy raises only a fraction of the money required to pay for the scheme. If the levy was to fully pay for the services provided under the medicare banner then it would need to be set at about 8%. There is an additional levy of 1.0%, known as the Medicare Levy Surcharge, for those on high annual incomes ($50,000) who do not have adequate levels of private hospital coverage. This is part of an effort by the current Liberal Party of Australia Federal Government to encourage people towards private health insurance.

Europe All of Europe has publicly sponsored and regulated health care. Countries include Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Minister of Health (France), Federal Ministry of Health (Germany), Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal,Portugal: Bentes M, Dias CM, Sakellarides C, Bankauskaite V. Health Care Systems in Transition: Portuagal. WHO are Regional Offices for Europe on behalf of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, 2004. Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Physicians for a National Health Program "International Health Systems

Ireland Health care in the Republic of Ireland is governed by the Health Act 2004, which established a new body to govern the national health service in the Republic of Ireland, the Health Service Executive. The new health service came into being officially on 1 January, 2005; however the new structures are in the process of being established. Currently the HSE is continuing to manage the health service under the The Eleven Kingdoms. The Health Boards no longer exist as corporate entities, however the structures which existed remain as divisions of the HSE until a plan of reorganisation is complete. Each former health board area operates as a division of the HSE and the former chief executive officer of each health board is now known as a chief officer for the HSE region.

Slovenia The Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia (the Institute) was founded on March 1, 1992, according to the Law on health care and health insurance, after declaring independence from Yugoslavia. The Institute conducts its business as a public institute, bound by statute to provide compulsory health insurance. In the field of compulsory health insurance, the Institute's principal task is to provide effective collection (mobilisation) and distribution (allocation) of public funds, in order to ensure the insured persons quality rights arising from the said funds. The rights arising from compulsory health insurance, furnished by the funds collected by means of compulsory insurance contributions, comprise the rights to health care services and rights to several financial benefits (sick leave pay, reimbursement of travel costs and funeral costs, and insurance money paid in case of death).The Institute comprises 10 regional units and 45 branch offices distributed around the territory of Slovenia. The functional unit the Information Centre and the Directorate complete the Institute structure. At the end of 2005, the Institute staff numbered regular 929 employees.The Institute is governed by an Assembly, whose members are the (elected) representatives of employers (including the representatives of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia) and employees. The executive body of the Assembly is the Institute Board of Directors.The Slovene health insurance card system was introduced, at the national scale, in the year 1999. The system provided the insured persons with a smart card and set up data links between the health care service providers and health insurance providers (the Health Insurance Institute and the two voluntary health insurance providers).

Switzerland Healthcare in Switzerland is regulated by the Federal Health Insurance Act. Health insurance is compulsory for all persons resident in Switzerland (within three months of taking up residence or being born in the country). International civil servants, members of permanent missions and their familiy members are exempted from compulsory health insurance. They can, however, apply to join the Swiss health insurance system, within six months of taking up residence in the country. Health insurance covers the costs of medical treatment and hospitalisation of the insured. However, the insured person pays part of the cost of treatment. This is done (a) by means of an annual excess (or deductible, called the franchise), which ranges from Swiss Franc 300 to a maximum of CHF 2,500 as chosen by the insured person (premiums are adjusted accordingly) and (b) by a charge of 10% of the costs over and above the excess.

United Kingdom 300), is used on signs and leaflets throughout the English NHS.The NHS is the world's largest, centralised health service, and the world's third largest employer after the Chinese army and the Indian railways. It was created in the aftermath of World War II, by Clement Attlee's The Labour Party (UK) government, based on the proposals of the William Beveridge Report, prepared in 1942.http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2WWbeveridgereport.htm The structure of the NHS in England and Wales was established by the National Health Service Act 1946 (1946 Act). The current Labour government has pumped billions of new money into the NHS. However, Tony Blair's policy, whilst leaving services free at point of use, was to encourage outsourcing of medical services and support to the private sector. Under the Private Finance Initiative, an increasing number of hospitals have been built (or rebuilt) by private sector consortia; hospitals may have both medical services (such as "independent Sector Treatment Centre"), and non-medical services (such as catering) provided under long-term contracts by the private sector. These are more expensive than if the new build was simply funded from the public purse. A study by a consultancy company which works for the Department of Health shows that every £200 million spent on privately financed hospitals will result in the loss of 1000 doctors and nurses. The first PFI hospitals contain some 28 per cent fewer beds than the ones they replaced. Even so there is for the first time complete political consensus on the importance of free public health care.

Latin America Most countries in Latin America have public health care provided. Mexico is planning to launch its own universal health care networkG20 Health Care: "Health Care Systems and Health Market Reform in the G20 Countries." Prepared for the World Economic Forum by Ernst & Young. January 3, 2006. though at the moment the standards of health care in Mexico are seriously lacking with large divides between rich and poor. Puerto Rico is planning its own Puerto Rico Health Reform for the poorest of the population. Health care in Venezuela is probably the most extensive and given the country's fortunes in oil wealth, expenditure has recently increased greatly, starting with mass vaccinations under the Plan Bolivar 2000.

Cuba , here at Havana airport, made the case for publicly funded health care across Latin AmericaThe Cuban politics of Cuba operates a national health system and assumes fiscal and administrative responsibility for the health care of its citizens. Harvard Public Health Review/Summer 2002 The Cuban Paradox Following the Revolution, the new Politics of Cuba asserted that universal healthcare was to become a priority of state planning. In 1960 revolutionary and physician Che Guevara outlined his aims for the future of Cuban healthcare in an essay entitled "On Revolutionary Medicine", stating: "The work that today is entrusted to the Ministry of Health and similar organizations is to provide public health services for the greatest possible number of persons, institute a program of preventive medicine, and orient the public to the performance of hygienic practices." On Revolutionary Medicine by Che Guevara Monthly review These aims were hampered almost immediately by an exodus of almost half of Cuba’s physicians to the United States, leaving the country with only 3,000 doctors and 16 professors in University of Havana’s medical college.Cuban Healthcare: An analysis of a Community-based model Essam Farag online Beginning in 1960, the Ministry of Public Health began a program of nationalization and regionalization of medical services. In 1976, Cuba's healthcare program was enshrined in Article 50 of the revised Cuban constitution which states

"Everyone has the right to health protection and care. The state guarantees this right by providing free medical and hospital care by means of the installations of the rural medical service network, polyclinics, hospitals, preventative and specialized treatment centers; by providing free dental care; by promoting the health publicity campaigns, health education, regular medical examinations, general vaccinations and other measures to prevent the outbreak of disease. All the population cooperates in these activities and plans through the social and mass organizations."° s:Constitution of Cuba Wikisource
1976 Constitution of Cuba 1976 (in Spanish)

Like the rest of the Economy of Cuba, Cuban medical care has suffered from severe material shortages following the end of Soviet subsidies and the ongoing United States embargo against Cuba that began after the Cuban Missile Crisis. The effects of the U.S. embargo on medicines in Cuba have been studied in numerous reports.
• R Garfield and S Santana. Columbia University, School of Nursing, New York; "The impact of the economic crisis and the US embargo on health in Cuba" "this embargo has raised the cost of medical supplies and food Rationing, universal access to primary health services"
• American Association for World Health; Online. American Association for World Health Report. March 1997. Accessed 6th October 2006. Supplementary source : American Public Health Association website "After a year-long investigation, the American Association for World Health has determined that the U.S. embargo of Cuba has dramatically harmed the health and nutrition of large numbers of ordinary Cuban citizens."
• Felipe Eduardo Sixto; An evaluation of Four decades of Cuban Healthcare.
"The lack of supplies accompanied by a deterioration of basic infastructure (potable water and sanitation) resulted in a setback of many of the previous accomplishments. The strengthening of the U.S. embargo contributed to these problems."
• Pan American Health organization; Health Situation Analysis and Trends Summary Country Profile: Cuba"The two determining factors underlying the crisis are well known. One is the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the socialist bloc, and the other is the economic embargo the Government of the United States."
• Harvard Public Health; Review/Summer 2002 : The Cuban Paradox "Because its access to traditional sources of financing is seriously hindered by the sanctions, which until recently included all food and medicine, Cuba has received little foreign and humanitarian aid to maintain the vitality of its national programs"
• The Lancet medical journal; Role of USA in shortage of food and medicine. "The resultant lack of food and medicines to Cuba contributed to the worst epidemic of neurological disease this century." Data for 2004 show that Cuba has one of the highest life expectancy rates in Latin America. Costa Rica, Chile, Virgin Islands, Guadeloupe, and Martinique now have a higher life expectancy for combined sexes from birth.

North America Canada The federal government of Lester B. Pearson, pressured by the New Democratic Party (NDP) who held the balance of power, introduced the Medical Care Act in 1966 that extended the HIDS Act cost-sharing to allow each province to establish a universal health care plan. It also set up the Medicare (Canada) system. In 1984, the Canada Health Act was passed, which prohibited user fees and extra billing by doctors. In 1999, the prime minister and most premiers reaffirmed in the Social Union Framework Agreement that they are committed to health care that has "comprehensiveness, universality, portability, public administration and accessibility."Government of Canada, Social Union, News Release, " A Framework to Improve the Social Union for Canadians: An Agreement between the Government of Canada and the Governments of the Provinces and Territories, February 4, 1999," URL accessed 20 December 2006. The Canadian system is for the most part publicly funded, yet most of the services are provided by private enterprises, private corporations. Most all doctors do not receive an annual salary, but receive a fee per visit or service. About 30% of Canadians' health care is paid for through the private sector. This mostly goes towards services not covered or only partially covered by Medicare (Canada) such as prescription drugs, dentistry and optometry. Many Canadians have private health insurance, often through their employers, that cover these expenses. In Canada, some services are permitted and some are not. The Supreme Court of Quebec ruled, in Chaoulli v. Quebec, that private services must be allowed to compete with the public program From Montreal University, thus opening the door to a dual system of private and public healthcare. Quebec has been the fastest to adopt this system and has the most private healthcare available of all the Canadian provinces.

United States , are on the far rightIn the United States, certain publicly funded health care programs help to provide for the elderly, disabled, military service families and veterans, children, and the poor,Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. CMS Programs & Information. Retrieved August 30, 2006. and federal law ensures Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act regardless of ability to pay;Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act. Retrieved August 30, 2006. however, a system of universal health care has not been implemented. The Massachusetts is attempting to implement a near-universal health care system by mandating that residents purchase Massachusetts 2006 Health Reform Statute by July 1, 2007. Fahrenthold DA. "Mass. Bill Requires Health Coverage." Washington Post; Wednesday, April 5, 2006; Page A01. California, Maine, Pennsylvania, and Vermont also are attempting universal systems at the state level, with some smaller locations such as San Francisco also attempting this at the citywide level .New York Times; January 9, 2007; California’s Governor Seeks Universal Care Some government health care systems allow private practitioners to provide services, and some do not.

Asia Israel, The Health Care System in Israel- An Historical Perspective Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Retrieved June 7, 2006. South Korea, Seychelles and Taiwan have universal health care. Thailand The Universal Coverage Policy of Thailand: An Introduction plans to.G20 Health Care: "Health Care Systems and Health Market Reform in the G20 Countries." Prepared for the World Economic Forum by Ernst & Young. January 3, 2006. Health care in India is guaranteed to "improve" for all under the constitution, although the reality does not live up to the vague wording of the article. In Sri Lanka, drugs are provided by a government owned drug manufacturer called the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation of Sri Lanka. In the Philippines, the health department organises public health for the country, and was established at the initiative of the American governors, before independence. Healthcare in Saudi Arabia has a publicly funded health system, although its levels are lower than the regional average.

Japan In Japan, payment for personal medical services is offered through a universal insurance system that provides relative equality of access, with fees set by a government committee. People without insurance through employers can participate in a national health insurance program administered by local governments. Since 1973, all elderly persons have been covered by government-sponsored insurance. Patients are free to select physicians or facilities of their choice. In the early 1990s, there were more than 1,000 mental hospitals, 8,700 general hospitals, and 1,000 comprehensive hospitals with a total capacity of 1.5 million beds. Hospitals provided both out-patient and in-patient care. In addition, 79,000 clinics offered primarily out-patient services, and there were 48,000 dentist. Most physicians and hospitals sold medicine directly to patients, but there were 36,000 pharmacy where patients could purchase synthetic or herbal medication.

National health expenditures rose from about 1 trillion Yen in 1965 to nearly 20 trillion Yen in 1989, or from slightly more than 5% to more than 6% of Japan's national income. In addition to cost-control problems, the system was troubled with excessive paperwork, long waits to see physicians, assembly-line care for out-patients (because few facilities made appointments), over medication, and abuse of the system because of low Out-of-pocket expenses to patients. Another problem is an uneven distribution of health personnel, with cities favored over rural areas.

Africa Health care in Africa is usually non existent or highly limited and under resourced. The outbreak and spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa has crippled many populations and sent life expectancies plummeting. However some countries have been able to tackle the challenges, for instance health care in Uganda as well as education has reduced HIV/AIDS infections from 13% to 4.1% from 1990 to 2003. This contrasts to some governments' approach, especially that of the South African Health Ministry who until recently denied the link between HIV/AIDS.

Nigeria Health care provision in Nigeria is a concurrent responsibility of the three tiers of government in the country. Rais Akhtar; Health Care Patterns and Planning in Developing Countries, Greenwood Press, 1991. pp 264 However, because Nigeria operates a mixed economy, private providers of health care have a visible role to play in health care delivery. The federal government's role is mostly limited to coordinating the affairs of the university teaching hospitals, while the state government manages the various general hospitals and the local government focus on dispensaries. The total expenditure on health care as % of GDP is 4.6, while the percentage of federal government expenditure on health care is about 1.5%.Ronald J. Vogel; Financing Health Care in Sub-Saharan Africa Greenwood Press, 1993. pp 18 A long run indicator of the ability of the country to provide food sustenance and avoid malnutrition is the rate of growth of per capita food production; from 1970-1990, the rate for Nigeria was 0.25%.Ronald J. Vogel; Financing Health Care in Sub-Saharan Africa Greenwood Press, 1993. pp 1-18 Though small, the positive rate of per capita may be due to Nigeria's importation of food products.

Historically, health insurance in Nigeria can be applied to a few instances: free health care provided and financed for all citizens, health care provided by government through a special health insurance scheme for government employees and private firms entering contracts with private health care providers. Ronald J. Vogel; Financing Health Care in Sub-Saharan Africa Greenwood Press, 1993. pp 101-102 However, there are few people who fall within the three instances. In May 1999, the government created the National Health Insurance Scheme, the scheme encompasses government employees, the organized private sector and the informal sector. Legislative wise, the scheme also covers children under five, permanently disabled persons and prison inmates. In 2004, the administration of Obasanjo further gave more legislative powers to the scheme with positive amendments to the original 1999 legislative act. Felicia Monye; 'An Appraisal of the National Health Insurance Scheme of Nigeria', Commonwealth Law Bulletin, 32:3 415-427

Countries Click "show" on the right of the templates below to release the drop down menu for health care by country. If your country has no article, please begin it with a short description.

Economics Medical (health) insurance is subject to the well-known economic problem of adverse selection which may also be referred to as a market failure. Adverse selection in insurance markets occurs because those providing insurance have limited information with which to estimate the risks their clients wish to insure against. In simple terms, those with poor health will apply for insurance, raising the cost of providing insurance; those with good health will find the cost of insurance too expensive, raising costs further. In practical terms, adverse selection means that private insurers are economically incentivized to spend substantial sums on 'weeding out' bad risks in advance by providing medical insurance only to the most healthy. Among the potential solutions posited by economists are forms of universal health insurance, such as requiring all citizens to purchase insurance, limiting the ability of insurance companies to deny insurance to individuals or vary price between individuals. Compulsory universal health insurance is a common thread, although there is no requirement that the insurance or medical services be provided by government.Michael Rothschild and Joseph Stiglitz, "Equilibrium in Competitive Insurance Markets: An Essay on the Economics of Imperfect Information," Quarterly Journal of Economics, November 1976 (90:629-649) (known as the Rothschild-Stiglitz Model) Paulo Belli, How Adverse Selection Affects the Health Insurance Market

{]!Infant mortality rate!Physicians per 1000 people!Nurses per 1000 people!Per capita expenditure on health (USD)!Healthcare costs as a percent of Gross domestic product!% of government revenue spent on health!% of health costs paid by government|-|Australia|80.5|5.0|2.14|9.95|2,669|9.9|16.7|69.9|-|[France|80.0|4.0|3.37|9.72|3,204|11.1|17.6|78.2|-|[Japan|80.5|3.0|3.28|10.24|3,149|9.4|13.6|85.2|-|[United Kingdom|79.5|5.0|2.30|12.12|2,428|8.0|15.8|85.7|-|USA (e.g. [Portugal). Some nations, such as Germany, FrancePhysicians for a National Health Program "International Health Systems". and JapanChua, Kao-Ping. "Single Payer 101". February 10, 2006. employ a multi-payer system in which health care is funded by private and public contributions. In 2001 Canadians paid $2,163 per capita versus $4,887 U.S., according to the Los Angeles Times (also, see table above). According to Dr. Stephen Bezruchka, a senior lecturer in the School of Public Health at the University of Washington in Seattle, Canadians do better by every health care measure. According to a World Health Organization report published in 2003, life expectancy at birth in Canada is 79.8 years, versus 77.3 in the U.S.

A distinction is also made between municipal and national healthcare funding. For example, one model is that the bulk of the healthcare is funded by the municipality, speciality healthcare is provided and possibly funded by a larger entity, such as a municipal co-operation board or the state, and the medications are paid by a state agency. No entirely private health care system exists, although the Massachusetts 2006 Health Reform Statute in Massachusetts attempts to make private health care more affordable.

Conservative Republican US Senator Bill Frist argued in the New England Journal of Medicine that the free market will keep costs down, because individuals who have to pay for their own health care will make wiser decisions and not spend money on unneeded or inefficient care. A deregulated free market, Frist argues, will also encourage efficiency and innovation. The US currently (2007) has the most expensive health care of any OECD country and also has the highest percentage of costs paid privately. Core Health Indicators

Politics The politics of health care depends largely on which country one is in. Current concerns in National Health Service, for instance, revolve around the use of private finance initiatives to build hospitals or the excessive use of targets in cutting waiting lists. In Germany and France, concerns are more based on the rising cost of drugs to the governments. In HIV/AIDS in Brazil, an important political issue is the breach of intellectual property rights, or patents, for the domestic manufacture of Antiretroviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV/AIDS. The HIV/AIDS in South Africa government, whose population sets the record for HIV infections, came under pressure for its refusal to admit there is any connection with AIDS BBC News: Controversy dogs Aids forum because of the cost it would have involved. In the United States, which has some of the most sophisticated, technologically advanced health care in the world, 12% to 16% of the citizens are still unable to afford complete health insurance.

Opponents of universal health care in the United States often argue that it will require higher taxes and a great likelihood of poorly performing health care facilities and physicians. http://www.jwpcivitasinstitute.org/newsroom/Magazine/Winter%2006%20Magazine.pdf; page 22. The absence of a market mechanism may slow innovation in treatment and research leading to rationing of care through waiting lists. A statistical comparison shows that it is not universal health care that leads to a doctor shortage, but the payment system to doctors that causes a doctors shortage. In Italy, Comparisons of Health Systems - Docters per patients p.13 doctors are paid a fee per patient per year, a per capita salary, and Italy does not have a doctor shortage but has one of the highest doctor per patient ration, 5.8 doctors per 1,000 patients. In Italy though, it should be noted that most physicians subsequently have very limited hours; many only maintaining patient hours 2 days per week. Canada, whose universal health care system pays its doctors a "fee per visit", creates a real market condition, where doctors' salaries are protected, and even increased, by decreasing the supply of doctors. Canada has a low doctor per patient ration of 2.1 doctors per 1,000 patients. A comparative analysis shows that a salaried doctor system, while not perfect, results in more doctors; however, they work substantially fewer hours, while the fee per visit system creates economic pressures to reduce the number of doctors, who subsequently work more hours.

The issue of quality control is an important aspect of any system, and in Canada, the self regulation of the health industry by the doctors union, the Canadian Medical Association, and its self regulatory wing, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario shows that most complaints are swept under the rug, Toronto Star and very few complaints sent to quality control for study.

Providers A health care provider or health professional is an organization or person who delivers proper health care in a systematic way professionally to any individual in need of health care services. A health care provider could be a government, Health care industry, health care equipment, institution such as a hospital or medical laboratory, physicians, support staff, nurses, therapists, psychologists, veterinarians, dentistry, Optometry, pharmacists, or even a health insurance company.

Further reading

Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved