International Health and Aid Policies: The Need for Alternatives

If anything good has come out of the ongoing crisis in the world economy that emerged in 2008, it is the realization in many quarters that old solutions do not work. The neoliberal trend that sought to replace the dominance of government in welfare systems has come under critical scrutiny. The focus on regulated competition, contracting out, and consumer choice, although not devoid of constructive lessons about policy, has left policy makers, academics, and citizens a bit disillusioned. It is clear that there are no panaceas, and after every major swing of the pendulum from a socialist to a capitalist orientation and back, there is a need to pick up the pieces and fine-tune the system.