As reported in the September 2022 governance newsletter, the P4H Network began a collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) office in Mexico, looking at the political economy of the ongoing Mexican health system transformation. At that time, terms of reference were developed to study related challenges regarding SHP, HF and UHC.
We can now report this study was completed, and a draft paper on results is forthcoming. The collaboration took place under the direction of the PAHO country office in Mexico, with the support of the WHO P4H team in Geneva and the PAHO Regional Office in Washington, DC, and included close work with institutions in political economy, HF, UHC and health protection. Among them were the National Secretary of Health (ministry of health) and the National Institute of Public Health of Mexico in dialogue with other ministries of the federal system. The Health Commission of the Senate of Mexico and other research centres attached to the national high specialty hospitals, and the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean in Mexico, also contributed.
The study team took a political economy approach to the topics in question, and three components were closely analysed. These included a history of health sector reforms from 1982 to 2022; health sector strengths and weaknesses in each of the existing public subsystems (within the Mexican federal system); and the health sector’s potential as a recipient of public funds and motor for possible national economic growth. The final step (ongoing) is to follow up with national authorities to review the results and translate them into useful elements from which to develop a health agenda in the context of the upcoming electoral period.
