Market forces in health care: A subtle operation

Market forces in the healthcare sector are a difficult issue. Jos Blank and Adrie Dumaij of the section for Innovation and Public Sector Efficiency (IP SE) Studies immerse themselves in the subject on a daily basis, but without taking up any particular position. “The symptoms are varied and complex, so we prefer to give a more subtle picture.”

Together with their colleagues, Blank and Dumaij conduct research into productivity issues in the public sector, with a particular focus on healthcare. They are currently very much in demand. “A lot of our work is on behalf of the government, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Council for Public Health and Health Care, and the NVZ Dutch Hospitals Association, but also the Flemish government, for example. Many issues affect government and policy, such as financial systems and planning  systems. This also covers market forces: will they work in the way that we think they will, and what conditions should be attached, if they are introduced?”

Read the complete article in the Quarterly VIII/4, December 2010