An area of study that is relatively neglected by comparative welfare state experts is the comparison of health care systems. Since the early 1990s, health care systems in Europe have experienced a myriad of changes, just like pensions systems, their counterpart. The systems of health care...

Since the ideologically coloured meaning of the 'welfare state', implying a massive level of redistribution and high government spending in the field of social policy, does not match the reality of a number of today's welfare state systems, especially outside Europe, this article examines the...