Implementing Planned Markets in Health Care: Balancing Social and Economic Responsibility (State of Health)

Drawing on experiences in Northern Europe and the United States, this text examines the key concepts behind the present push toward health reform in the industrialized world: contracting and solidity; contestable versus competitive markets; the role of vouchers; and physicians' clinical autonomy. The book includes case studies of planned market approaches based on contracts, patient choice and quality of care. It concludes with a broad comparative assessment of the main themes and points towards the most likely developments in future "planned market" models of health care.