The rise of pragmatism in state/market debate

Discussion about the relative role of public and private in health care has evolved substantially across Europe since the 1980s. The previous, broadly ideological debate about state ‘versus’ market has been superceded by pragmatic considerations on how best to combine state ‘and’ market to achieve specific health sector outcomes. The London School of Economics debate about expanded patient choice demonstrated the extent to which pragmatism has gained the upper hand.