Saltman on solidarity

Lawrence D. Brown*, David P. Chinitz

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalComment/debate

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

Richard Saltman suggests that solidarity, a cherished notion at the heart of West European health care systems is being reconsidered in the light of today's austere economic conditions. Solidarity, he argues, has always been a flexible moral guideline, one that allows for policy responses, such as limitations on health benefits or increased out of pocket payments, that challenging fiscal conditions are said to demand. Here we consider what the basic elements in solidarity - universality, redistribution, and uniformity-- mean in health as compared to other social policy realms such as pensions. Traditionally, the commitment to solidarity said little about the contents of services, but the latter is perhaps subject to increasing scrutiny under the health policy microscope. Saltman is right to emphasize the conceptual and cross-national flexibility of solidarity, but the notion retains a solid and durable core that continues to give valuable direction to policymakers in search of acceptable strategies and structures for decision making.

Original languageEnglish
Article number27
JournalIsrael Journal of Health Policy Research
Volume4
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 10 Jun 2015
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Brown and Chinitz.

Keywords

  • Economic austerity
  • Health reform
  • Solidarity

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