International Journal of Health Policy and Management

International Journal of Health Policy and Management

Financing Long-term Care: The Role of Culture and Social Norms; Comment on “Financing Long-term Care: Lessons From Japan”

Document Type : Commentary

Authors
Peter Alders
Frederik Schut
Erasmus School of Health Policy and Management, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
10.15171/ijhpm.2019.110
Abstract
Based on the experiences of Japan and Germany, Ikegami argues that middle-income countries should introduce public long-term care insurance (LTCi) at an early stage, before benefits have expanded as a result of ad hoc policy decisions to win popular support. The experience of the Netherlands, however, shows that an early introduction of public LTCi may not prevent, but instead even facilitate later extensions of public coverage. We argue that social norms and cultural values about caring for the elderly might be the main driver of expansions of LTCi coverage. Furthermore, we posit that this expansion may reinforce the social norms supporting it. Hence, politicians and policy-makers should be aware of this possible self-reinforcing effect.
Keywords
Long-term Care Insurance
Public Insurance
Social Norms
Universal Coverage
Subjects
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International Journal of Health Policy and Management
Volume 9, Issue 4
April 2020
Pages 179-181

  • Received Date 02 September 2019
  • Revised Date 31 October 2019
  • Accepted Date 02 November 2019
  • First Published Date 01 April 2020
  • Published Date 01 April 2020