Neoliberalism, Globalization, and Inequalities: Consequences for Health and Quality of Life(Policy, Politics, Health and Medicine Series)

Since U.S. President Reagan and U.K. Prime Minister Thatcher, a major ideology (under the name of economic science) has been expanded worldwide that claims that the best policies to stimulate human development are those that reduce the role of the state in economic and social lives: privatizing public services and public enterprises, deregulating the mobility of capital and labor, eliminating protectionism, and reducing public social protection. This ideology, called 'neoliberalism,' has guided the globalization of economic activity and become the conventional wisdom in international agencies and institutions (such as the IMF, World Bank, World Trade Organization, and the technical agencies of the United Nations, including the WHO). Reproduced in the 'Washington consensus' in the United States and the 'Brussels consensus' in the European Union, this ideology has guided policies widely accepted as the only ones possible and advisable.This book assembles a series of articles that challenge that ideology. Written by well-known scholars, these articles question each of the tenets of neoliberal doctrine, showing how the policies guided by this ideology have adversely affected human development in the countries where they have been implemented.

Table of Contents:
PART I What Is Neoliberalism? Neoliberalism as a Class Ideology; Or, the Political Causes of the Growth of Inequalities Vicente Navarro PART II Neoliberalism, Globalization, and the Welfare State Is Globalization Undermining the Welfare State? The Evolution of the Welfare State in Developed Capitalist Countries during the 1990's Vicente Navarro, John Schmitt, and Javier Astudillo The Future of the Welfare State: Crisis Myths and Crisis Realities Francis G. Castles PART III The Growth of Inequalities Should We Worry about Inequality? Robert Hunter Wade The Causes of Increasing World Poverty and Inequality; Or, Why the Matthew Effect Prevails Robert Hunter Wade Is Globalization Reducing Poverty and Inequality? Robert Hunter Wade PART IV Consequences of Neoliberalism and Globalization for Health and Quality of Life The Scorecard on Development: 25 Years of Diminished Progress Mark Weisbrot, Dean Baker, and David Rosnick The World Health Situation Vicente Navarro PART V European Integration and Its Consequences for Health and Quality of Life Economic Efficiency versus Social Equality? The U.S. Liberal Model versus the European Social Model Vicente Navarro and John Schmitt Is the United States a Good Model for Reducing Social Exclusion in Europe? John Schmitt and Ben Zipperer PART VI The Liberal Model in the United States and Its Social Consequences Labor Markets and Economic Inequality in the United States Since the End of the 1970s John Schmitt The Politics of Health Inequalities Research in the United States Vicente Navarro PART VII The Situation in Latin America: Alternatives to Neoliberalism An Alternative to the Neoliberal Model in Health: The Case of Venezuela Oscar Feo and Carlos Eduardo Siqueira Venezuela's Barrio Adentro: An Alternative to Neoliberalism in Health Care Carles Muntaner, René M. Guerra Salazar, Joan Benach, and Francisco Armada PART VIII The Consequences of Neoliberalism in Africa The Dispossession of African Wealth at the Cost of Africa's Health Patrick Bond Uneven Health Outcomes and Political Resistance under Residual Neoliberalism in Africa Patrick Bond and George Dor The International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Africa: A "Disastrous" Record Demba Moussa Dembele PART IX Analysis of Proposed Solutions to Current Health and Social Problems A. Critiques of WHO Commissions The Sachs Report: Investing in Health for Economic Development-Or Increasing the Size of the Crumbs from the Rich Man's Table? Alison Katz Report of the WHO Commission on Macroeconomics and Health: A Critique Debabar Banerji Assessment of the World Health Report 2000 Vicente Navarro Serious Crisis in the Practice of International Health by the World Health Organization: The Commission on Social Determinants of Health Debabar Banerji B. Critique of Neoliberal Solutions to World Poverty A Critique of Jeffrey D. Sachs's The End of Poverty Doug Henwood Meet the Contributors Index

About the Author :
Vicente Navarro is professor of health and public policy, sociology, and policy studies at the Johns Hopkins university, USA, and professor of political and social sciences at the pompeu fabra university, Spain. He has also been professor of economics at Barcelona university, Spain. Dr. Navarro has served as consultant to the united nations and to many of its agencies, such as the who and unicef, and been a member of many international commissions dealing with human development areas. He has written extensively on political economy, public policy, and human development, and his books have been translated into many different languages. his most recent volumes include the political economy o f social inequalities: consequences for health and quality o f life and the politics of health policy.