A ‘Common Sense’ Response to Health Inequalities in Peru? Public-Private Partnerships in Health and the Implications for the Right to Health and Economic Inequality

Abstract

Abstract Drawing on the case of Peru, our analysis looks at the ways in which the mainstream media creates support for government policies aimed at implementing Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the health sector. Peru has a highly fragmented and segmented healthcare system, and the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the deeply embedded inequalities in accessing healthcare across the country. Nevertheless, the construction of hospitals financed and managed via a PPP arrangement has been one of the major solutions proposed and implemented by successive Peruvian governments in response to the health sector’s challenges. As our analysis demonstrates, the media has played a significant role in promoting this ‘common sense’ agenda whereby greater reliance on the private sector is presented as a solution to the weaknesses of the public sector. Our article considers the wider evidence on the role of PPPs in the health sector and contends that there is very little evidence on the system-wide benefits of PPPs, thus raising significant concerns about their ability to address health inequalities effectively. It also raises important questions about how far PPPs are able to support states in guaranteeing the right to health for their citizens.