Health care reform in Israel: An historical and sociopolitical conundrum

A new and comprehensive National Health Insurance Law was implemented in Israel on January 1, 1995. This major health care reform initiative culminated an effort lasting several decades to assure broad universal health care coverage for the population as a matter of national law. Issues that affected the development of the reform package included 1) the formation of sick funds that provide care to over 96% of the population as part of other powerful sociopolitical organizations, 2) the historical development of parallel private July 16, 1995 and governmental health care systems before Israel became a state in 1948 and the post-state maintenance of multiple health care delivery systems, and 3) the close interactions of health care systems and the political processes and parties of the nation. This paper describes the effects of these forces on resisting changes that were widely accepted as being necessary to expand access, control rising health care costs, and improve the efficiency of the nation's health care system.