ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the US, Netherlands, New Zealand, and UK health care systems. I discuss the four countries in a sequence that reflects a continuum in terms of levels of private funding and private delivery. At one end of the spectrum, the US relies to the greatest degree on private funding and private supply whereas at the other end, the UK relies to the greatest degree on public funding and provision. The Netherlands falls along this continuum closer towards the US, but there is a fundamental and crucial distinction with respect to access. Through regulation, the Netherlands ensures that the poorest 60 percent of the population are covered for comprehensive care, and that the entire population is covered for “exceptional” medical expenses. New Zealand falls closer on the continuum towards the UK, but what distinguishes New Zealand is its relatively high reliance on private financing (by patients themselves and by private insurance) for general practitioner services.
