The article explores the healthcare systems of various countries and their approach in tackling the pandemic. It also attempts to gain some ideas on the best practices being followed by different countries. Tracing the proportion of public and private expenditure and the healthcare schemes of the countries concerned, it moves on to the effect of the pandemic on the healthcare services.

Image source: The Print

Katiyayinee Richhariya 

They say that no man is rich enough to buy his past and indeed every action of today has its roots in yesterday, which even the mightiest of all are unable to change. The losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic of today can be traced back to the existing healthcare systems of various countries. Even the mightiest bastions of healthcare systems fell apart. The article compares various healthcare systems around the globe.

Italy is the second and thirdmost affected country with a death toll of more than 23,000 and more than 1,75,000 confirmed cases, respectively. Italian government had recognised the right to Human Dignity in the form of Italian National Health service way back in 1978. This is one of the most robust governmental schemes of Italy. According to a 2014 data, the government funds almost 76 per cent of the healthcare expenditure, with private hospitals contributing only 1 per cent. However, states have been given the option of raising their own funds independently which explains the inter-state disparities in the healthcare system. The most important lesson for Italy could be rethinking the highly decentralised healthcare system, although not to transform it into the employer-based, privatised system that existed prior to 1970.

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Katiyayinee Richhariya is Research Intern at Centre for Public Policy Research. Views expressed by the author are personal and need not reflect or represent the views of Centre for Public Policy Research.

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