The health policy journal club is an interdisciplinary, inter-professional group convened monthly by the Farley Health Policy Center to discuss timely topics in health policy. A curated selection of high-yield articles provides the basis for discussion. Past topics have included income inequality and health, professionalism in medicine, patients as consumers, and adjusting payment for measures of social risk. This page presents the reading list from the most recent journal club.

The Farley Center’s May Health Policy Journal Club compared international health care delivery systems. This month’s readings highlighted different approaches to providing and financing health care delivery in low/middle income countries as well as high income countries.

Brief video (10 min) that provides an overview of the four main healthcare systems in the world: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK4EV9wJPm0

Low- and Middle-Income Country Comparison; the Goal of Universal Health Coverage

Flourence, M, et al. “Moving toward universal health coverage with a national health insurance program: A scoping review and narrative synthesis of experiences in eleven low- and lower-middle income countries” PLOS Global Public Health. January 9, 2025. 

Kodali, P. “Achieving Universal Health Coverage in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Challenges for Policy Post-Pandemic and Beyond.” Risk Management and Healthcare Policy. April 6, 2023. 

Tracking universal health coverage: 2025 global monitoring report. Geneva: World Health Organization and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank; 2025.  (executive summary only)

High-income Country Comparison

Carroll, AE. I studied five countries' health care systems. We need to get more creative with ours. New York Times. June 13, 2023 (attached)

Williams, RD. How the U.S. can learn from other countries in reforming the health care system: Q&A with Thomas Rice. Commonwealth Fund. June 25, 2021.

M, Gunja; M, Tikkanen R. Primary care in high-income countries: how the United States compares. Commonwealth Fund. March 15, 2022.