This article discusses the share of expenses that should be covered by the public plan and looks at how those revenues should be raised. It deals with a fundamental issue that must be addressed in a system where government takes a major role in health care financing. This issue is about the relative importance of the public plan and private payments as sources of funding. Another related issue is how the revenue to pay for public spending on health care should be raised. The article discusses financing through general revenue and compares it with various forms of social insurance. A related...

This article discusses the share of expenses that should be covered by the public plan and looks at how those revenues should be raised. It deals with a fundamental issue that must be addressed in a system where government takes a major role in health care financing. This issue is about the relative importance of the public plan and private payments as sources of funding. Another related issue is how the revenue to pay for public spending on health care should be raised. The article discusses financing through general revenue and compares it with various forms of social insurance. A related issue is the financing of health care for the elderly in a social insurance system. The third fundamental question, finally, concerns the way money should be spent. The article discusses the nature of the contracts between providers and the public plan.