Health Care Financing
1.1.5 Medicines financing mechanisms to achieve equitable and sustainable access to medicines
Equitable and sustainable access to medicines can be achieved through medicines financing mechanisms designed based on the three principles of equity, affordability and delivery of essential medicines.
Promoting the establishment of sustainable ways of financing medicines expenditure is considered as one of the means to achieve global health goals set by the world community. There are four alternative systems identified for financing medicines – out-of-pocket payment, general taxation, compulsory social health insurance and commercial health insurance.
Comparison of the four alternative financing systems based on the principles of equity, affordability and delivery of essential medicines, show that general taxation and compulsory social health insurance or a suitable combination of both prove to be the most appropriate financing mechanisms to ensure equitable and sustainable access to medicines.
HAIAP will initiate an inter-country project to strengthen national medicine financing systems to increase access to medicines through promoting concepts of equitable and sustainable medicines financing. The project will include studying the existing medicines financing mechanisms in selected countries of the region, critically analysing them and suggesting recommendations to develop equitable and sustainable medicines financing mechanisms in countries. In all countries of the Asia-Pacific region, the total expenditure on medicinal drugs in both the public and private sectors constitutes a substantial proportion of the total health expenditure varying from 40 to 70 per cent. The inter-country project will therefore study the financing of health care systems with particular focus on medicines financing.
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