The Health of Nations

Reviews

'The reader will be absorbed from the first to the last page. ... This book is not only immediately relevant, it will become a classic' - Vicente Navarro, in the Preface

'Inequality, whether of wealth or power, undermines our best efforts to provide effective support to communities in their quest for better health. Mooney challenges neoliberal assumptions and through elegant case studies demonstrates how we can improve what we do through real community involvement in making decisions about health according to the values that matter.' - Prof. Stephen Leeder, Director, The Menzies Centre for Health Policy, Director, Research Network, Western Sydney LHD, The University of Sydney

'In this most original and highly readable book, Gavin Mooney makes a compelling case that we can do far more to improve people's health in both developed and developing countries. He ably documents current shortcomings, concluding that most of the problems lie in 'neoliberal' policies - that is, those that sacrifice public decision-making to that of the marketplace, which in turn is controlled by corporate interests. Rather than just posing the problem, he comes up with thought-provoking solutions, showing, for example, that local citizenry are fully capable of coming up with sophisticated organizational and distributional policy aimed at improving the health of the community. This book aims high and achieves.' - Thomas Rice, Distinguished Professor, UCLA School of Public Health

'This is a biting and insightful book on what is wrong with the political economy of the world today that so much goes wrong with our health systems. Sharply written and informative in the best Zed tradition!' - Prof. Gita Sen, Centre for Public Policy, Indian Institute of Management

'This is Mooney at his 'no-holds-barred' best, laying bare the power relationships affecting health. Unless health economists start paying attention to the political economy of health, progress in solving the health challenges facing us will be painfully slow. This book is setting us on that path.' - Prof. Di McIntyre, Health Economics Unit, University of Cape Town

'Many social scientists and activists have long felt extremely frustrated by a paradigm which links health care closely to the market - a market that is supposed to be free of corporate power. Mooney's book shows what can be achieved even under the power of big corporations that dominate the pharmaceutical industry worldwide, as well as under the neoliberal ideology adopted by many governments, some of which profess to be leftist. While exposing the misdeeds of big corporations and their clientelistic governments, Mooney's book indicates how much can be achieved by, first, promoting communitarianism in a principled and rational way and, second, listening to the concerns of the people being served by health care, not just hospital managers or those in the medical profession.' - Amiya Bagchi, Institute of Development Studies Kolkata

'Gavin Mooney is that rare breed, a health economist 'as if people mattered'. Reading this book, it is abundantly clear how much he cares about suffering, poverty and inequality: most health economists analyse and pronounce on these issues, but leave the expression of values to other professions. Mooney is therefore ideally placed to understand and explain the political and economic causes of the obscene health inequalities in a world dominated by the notion of health as a business opportunity. His global overview allows him to present fascinating examples of 'the good, the bad and the ugly' in health policy and health care in a wide range of settings and continents. His critical, political economy perspective provides a rich and deep account of how and why the neoliberal creed that has infiltrated and manipulated so much of the world in the last forty years exerts its malign influence over our health and our lives. Mooney's clear and accessible documentation of the economics and power dynamics of social and environmental injustice in health is a must-read for anyone studying, searching or struggling for a healthier world.' - Dr Alex Scott-Samuel, Director, International Health Impact Assessment Consortium, University of Liverpool