Making Health Financing Work for Poor People in Tanzania

Tanzania is currently developing a Health Financing Strategy to provide a medium to long-term road map for a sustainable and integrated health financing system. This book is designed to inform this discussion by providing an analytical basis for the discussion of options, a series of policy options which could be considered in moving forward, and the economic and financial implications of these options. In doing so, it is hoped that this book will help stimulate the discussion of options and help Tanzania develop a health financing strategy which meets its long-term needs. Health financing in Tanzania is currently highly fragmented, with many different sources of funds and programs directed at specific population groups. Despite this, many people still do not access health services because of financial barriers, and this burden falls disproportionately on the poor. This book looks at the current situation with respect to health financing as well as the experience in other countries to address health financing for the poor and the population generally, using a common analytical framework. The book then explores a number of options in the areas of revenue generation, pooling of funds, purchasing and service provision, and also looks at the regulatory and political environment, making specific recommendations which can be considered in each of these areas. The focus of these recommendations is particularly on improving financial health protection for the poor. The economic, financial and service delivery implications are then examined, using several different scenarios for extending pre-paid health insurance coverage to the population. Making Health Financing Work for the Poor in Tanzania will be of interest to readers working in the areas of health care and public health, social protection, and social analysis and policy, in Tanzania and in other countries aiming for improvements in their health financing systems.