Reforming health care in Chile

Chile has maintained a dual health care system in which citizens can opt for coverage with either the public National Health Insurance Fund or a private health insurance company. However, the two systems operate essentially separate from each other rather than collaborating on common health care goals. Low-income and high-risk populations are generally served by the public system, while low-risk and high-income people are usually treated in the private system. These inequities have spurred the Chilean government to implement health care reforms to correct this imbalance. An analysis in CMAJ by researchers based in Chile and the UK outlines the current situation and some of the challenges in reforming the system http://www.cmaj.ca/press/pg1289.pdf.

Source: Canadian Medical Association Journal