Session Title:
Government Regulation & Public-Private Partnerships

Speaker Name / Title:
David Bloom & Tarun Khanna

Organization:
Harvard School of Public Health & Harvard Business School

Description:
In much of the developing world, poor health is a major impediment to both quality of life and economic development. The poor are particularly vulnerable to the economic impacts of ill health, as they lack the savings to pay for prevention and treatment, and often rely on their own physical labor for their livelihoods. As a result, long-term illnesses strip families of income and assets. At the same time, the public health systems of most developing countries tend to focus their modest resources on treatment rather than prevention, and often give higher priority to diseases that afflict the wealthy rather than the poor.

This paper discusses ways of addressing these obstacles and meeting the need for healthcare in developing countries. It looks at different types of health interventions and the different actors (government, for-profit companies and non-profits) involved and then discusses three major health problems – heart disease, HIV/AIDS, and childhood illnesses – to show the different levels of private sector involvement in health. We focus in particular on partnerships between public and private sector organizations and on how such partnerships can be most effective.

The paper finds that in most cases the benefit to developing world populations of business intervention in health heavily outweighs the incentives for firms. In these circumstances, partnerships between public and private sectors offer the best solution. Governments have expertise in identifying social goals and designing programs to achieve them. They also have funds, which can create incentives where there would otherwise be none. Businesses, on the other hand, have skills in implementation and innovation, as well as the proven ability to reach targets and deliver products and programs to large numbers of people.

Such partnerships are still at a fledgling stage, though there is increasing recognition by all parties that they are needed. Investment in health care can help both private and public sector organizations achieve their goals. If they can find effective ways to work together, the health gap between rich and poor countries may at last begin to close.