Does resource allocation meet policy priorities?
Tania Dmytraczenko, PhD, Abt Associates Inc, Suite 600, 4800 Montgomery Lane, Bethesda, MD 20814, 301-215-5902, tania_dmytraczenko@abtassoc.com and Patricia Hernandez, MD, PhD, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland. Health systems in most OECD countries are highly redistributive in nature, with national programs or social insurance schemes guaranteeing that services are accessible to those who cannot afford to pay. Systems in developing countries are vastly different. Private markets often account for upward of 50% of total health expenditures, making equity a principal concern of health policy makers. This paper investigates equity aspects of health systems in a sample of developing countries, with particular focus on Ecuador and Morocco, to assess whether resources are being allocated in accordance with policy objectives. A National Health Accounts methodology was used to estimate public and private expenditures for 1997 in both countries. Total expenditures as well as the f
