21st-century capitalism: structural challenges for universal health care

Abstract The structural perspective outlined here sheds light on some of the fundamental challenges involved in achieving Universal Health Care (UHC) in this twenty-first-century era of trade and financialized capitalism. This commentary explores connections between the structure of twenty-first-cen...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Susan K. Sell
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2019-11-01
Series:Globalization and Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12992-019-0517-3
Description
Summary:Abstract The structural perspective outlined here sheds light on some of the fundamental challenges involved in achieving Universal Health Care (UHC) in this twenty-first-century era of trade and financialized capitalism. This commentary explores connections between the structure of twenty-first-century capitalism and challenges to achieving UHC, discussing three features of today’s capitalism: financialized capitalism; trade, intangibles and global value chains; and inequality (as exacerbated by the first two features). The final section discusses the various opportunities for reform to facilitate UHC—from tinkering with the status quo, to deeper regulatory reform and fundamental structural change.
ISSN:1744-8603