Circles of Exclusion: The Politics of Health Care in Israel

Dr. Dani Filc delves into Israel\u27s health care system and provides numerous insights on how a private health care system undermines the principle of caring for the poor. Dr. Filc stresses that blind commitment to a for-profit health care system leads to wasted money and increased social inequity

Economic implications of the Divergence Indicators in the EMS

The system of so-called Divergence Indicators in the European Monetary System puts pressure on the monetary authorities to consult before the intervention points are reached in the foreign exchange markets. Under integration aspects this arrangement marks an advance, but it also carries risks and dangers with it

Is Latin America on the Right Track? An Analysis of Medium-Term Frameworks and the Budget Process

Medium Term Fiscal Frameworks (MTFs) have become one of the most popular reforms to the budgetary process in Latin America during the last decade, and introducing MTFs seemed to be the magic solution for most fiscal ailments. Nonetheless, there has been no comprehensive evaluation of their impact. This document discusses the normative merits of using MTFs, provides a characterization of the different types of MTF, and describes their development in the Latin American region based on extensive field work. As a first approximation for understanding how they are working, this document explores in detail the cases of Argentina, Colombia and Peru. While an unambiguous diagnosis is not possible, this document lays the groundwork for progress toward comprehensive impact evaluations and, eventually, to the consolidation of MTFs in the region.Latin America, Medium-Term Fiscal Frameworks, Medium-Term Expenditure Frameworks, Budget Process, Fiscal Outcomes, Fiscal Reforms

Target zones for the US dollar?

The discussion of target zones for flexible exchange rates is evidence of the desire to experiment with new instruments for stabilising the international monetary system. What distinguishes target zones from systems of flexible and fixed exchange rates? What form should they take? How should one regard the various objections to target zones

Reconstructing data : evidence-Based Medicine and Evidence-Based Public Health in context

The emergence of Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) as the gold-standard practice in biomedicine and public health practices represents a significant epistemological turn in modern medicine. The development of Evidence-Based Public Health (EBPH) followed the emergence of Evidence-Based Medicine, as an attempt to ground health policies and interventions on «sound facts». The present paper analyzes the historical and sociological roots of this turn. We evaluate the ethical and social consequences of this transformation, both within the medical profession (the polarization between a medical elite which strengthened its professional status, and a rank and file which experienced a process of «de-professionalization») and in its relationship to the welfare state (the link between the medical elite, EBM, EBPH and the commodification of health care and public health)