Social reinsurance: A new approach to sustainable community health financing

"This book opens a path between traditional government based and market based responses to the lack of health care for the very poor people of our planet, maintaining a role for the government in furthering social goals through microinsurance while also creating a favorable market environment. The path is a pragmatic look at what close to people needs schemes can do to fill the huge gap of ill being. The authors, however, dig deeper into the subject in various manners: they link their analysis to the emerging study of social capital can the need for people to trust their peers and build networks with them: they also give a strong and analytical underpinning to how to insure and reinsure community based financing schemes;they preempt possible critics by addressing the need to design from the beginning, an adequate regulatory environment for microinsurance and reinsurance;and finally, they go from theory to practice with a thorough case study of a pilot experience in the Philippines. The book allows the reader to have a full immersion in the fresh well of creative response to the challenge of lifting the poor people from ill-being to well being. The study is relevant and timely, and open the door for action, and probably for healthy, intense debate on the issue as well."