1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910467907403321

Autore

Harris Joseph <1976 August 23->

Titolo

Achieving access : professional movements and the politics of health universalism / / Joseph Harris

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Ithaca : , : ILR Press, an imprint of Cornell University Press, , 2017

ISBN

1-5017-1483-X

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (pages cm.)

Collana

The culture and politics of health care work

Disciplina

362.1

Soggetti

Health services accessibility - Thailand

Health services accessibility - Brazil

Health services accessibility - South Africa

AIDS (Disease) - Treatment - Government policy - Thailand

AIDS (Disease) - Treatment - Government policy - Brazil

AIDS (Disease) - Treatment - Government policy - South Africa

Medical policy - Thailand

Medical policy - Brazil

Medical policy - South Africa

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Democratization, elites, and the expansion of access to healthcare and medicine -- Thailand : chasing the dream of free medical care for the sick -- Brazil : against all odds -- South Africa : embracing national health insurance in name only -- Thailand : from village safety to universal access -- Brazil : constituting rights, setting precedents, challenging norms -- South Africa : contesting the luxury of AIDS dissidence.

Sommario/riassunto

At a time when the world's wealthiest nations struggle to make health care and medicine available to everyone, why do resource-constrained countries make costly commitments to universal health coverage and AIDS treatment after transitioning to democracy? Joseph Harris explores the dynamics that made landmark policies possible in Thailand and Brazil but which have led to prolonged struggle and contestation in



South Africa. Drawing on firsthand accounts of the people wrestling with these issues, Achieving Access documents efforts to institutionalize universal healthcare and expand access to life-saving medicines in three major industrializing countries. In comparing two separate but related policy areas, Harris finds that democratization empowers elite professionals, such as doctors and lawyers, to advocate for universal health care and treatment for AIDS. Harris's analysis is situated at the intersection of sociology, political science, and public health and will speak to scholars with interests in health policy, comparative politics, social policy, and democracy in the developing world. In light of the growing interest in health insurance generated by implementation of the Affordable Care Act (as well as the coming changes poised to be made to it), Achieving Access will also be useful to policymakers in developing countries and officials working on health policy in the United States.