NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

How do we create stronger health markets? It’s a question with no easy answer, but one that all stakeholders invested in improving global health outcomes need to ask if we are to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3: good health and well-being for all.

According to Yasmin Madan, marketing director for nonprofit Population Services International, a “functional health care market” is one in which health solutions, whether provided by public or private actors, are affordable and accessible to everyone.

This requires that all stakeholders have the capacity and incentives to sustainably perform the functions required for supply to meet consumer demand. “A functional market combines affordability, accessibility, awareness, assured quality and appropriate technology,” she said.

Because multiple actors are involved in the provision and distribution of health services, creating effective health systems requires high-level coordination and cooperation between governments, private companies, health care providers and nongovernmental organizations. But what role is each stakeholder best positioned to play? Are there any universal strategies that stakeholders can employ to make health markets work more effectively, or does each country need to chart its own path?