Public Policies and Research Project develops technical cooperation to strengthen national public health systems; to promote development or strengthening of national health care (services) systems of universal coverage (population) and universal access to a comprehensive package of health care services; and to identify and promote policies to reduce health (status) and health care systems inequalities and inequities in access (and/or utilization) of health care services.

Scope of Work – 2010- 2011

• Analysis of Health Systems and Services
• Health Economics and Financing
• Health Legislation
• Health Research Promotion and Development
• Health Policies and Plans
• Social Exclusion and Social Protection

Focus of Technical Cooperation Activities
During the 2010-2011 technical cooperation activities of the Project on Public Policies and Research for health and health systems development will focus on improving institutional and country’s capabilities in developing public policies and research geared to: i) strengthening national public health systems, ii) promote the development or strengthening national health care systems of universal coverage and access to health care services, and, iii)[ the reduction of health and health care systems inequalities and inequities (inequalities in access and/or utilization of health care services). 

 Resources, Areas of Work and Priorities

The staff and posts assigned to the project include expertise in public policies and research in the following areas: health legislation, health economics and financing; health systems organization, financing and management; social security and social health insurance systems; social exclusion and social protection; health policy planning and budgeting; health research promotion and development; health systems performance analysis; and  essential public health functions (EPHF) evaluation

During 2010-2011 the work of the project is organized around the areas of public policies and research for health, and for health systems and services development. The work of staff and the posts that previously focused on public policies will be expanded to include the development and promotion of research on health systems and services. The scope of work of the staff and posts previously focused on health research promotion and development will be expanded to include the promotion of research on health systems and services development. 

Priorities during 2010-2011 include:

1) Technical cooperation on legislative and regulatory frameworks needed required in national health care systems providing universal coverage and access to health care services. Policy applied research will focus on lessons learnt from comparative analysis legislation and regulation in countries with national health care services systems or national health insurance systems that provides universal coverage and access and countries that do not have such systems: norms and regulation about the public and private provision of health care services (general and specialized consultation, clinical and hospital services and other therapeutic procedures), the quality of the services and regulation about  the production, commercialization and use of pharmaceutical products.

2) Technical cooperation on public policies and research for strengthening national public health systems, and on the organization, financing and management of national health care services systems aimed to achieve universal coverage and or the reduction of health and health care systems inequalities and inequities. It involves the dissemination of information on comparative studies on the main characteristics of national health care systems classified as of universal coverage – throughout national health care services or national social health insurance systems, vis-à-vis, the country’s current health care systems structure and policy directions for achieving universal access/coverage. Assessment of health care systems performance in terms of inequalities and inequities will become and integral part of technical cooperation on issues related to the organization, financing and management of national health care systems.

3) Technical cooperation on social security and social health insurance will include the analysis and dissemination of information on policies about the organization, financing and management for expanding coverage of health programs of social security institutions and/or different social health insurance schemes.  Research in this area health systems and services research will focus on documenting the evolution, current situation and identification of changes needed in regulatory frameworks, organization, expenditure, financing and management of social security and social health insurance systems that have moved towards achieving universal access/coverage.

4) The work on social exclusion and social protection will complete the studies on the characterization of social exclusion in countries of the region, and will continue training activities and dissemination of information on social protection and social exclusion. Policy applied research on health care systems will focus on a comparative study of social health insurance in MERCOSUR countries.

5) During 2010-2011 technical cooperation activities in the area of health research and promotion will be expanded from fundamental biomedical research and health interventions, to include, explicitly, a component of promotion and development of public policies and research on health systems and services.