Within the framework of its activity-based payment system, introduced in 2005, the French government is now seeking to achieve price convergence between public and private hospitals. This paper questions the economic justification of this convergence by examining the literature on hospital costs...

In 2005, France joined the ranks of most other developed countries when it introduced an activity based payment system to finance all acute care hospitals. Despite some basic principles in common, the design of these systems can vary significantly across countries. In order to understand better...