TWO INTERPRETATIONS OF HEALTH TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME: ELITES AGAINST THE PEOPLE? OR THE DOCTORS DEFENDING THE PUBLIC HEALTH?

Abstract

This study which analyzes the political discourse that was generated around the health reform by Justice and Development Party, government and the pro-government media. The research focuses especially on the significance of health transformation programme has throughout the 2007 and 2011 parliamentary election campaigns as well as 2009 and 2014 local election campaigns. The study also analyzes how the anti- health reform discourse was generated. This research ,while looking at how the health transformation program was portrayed by the government and how a pro-reform discourse was generated around it, at the same time analyzing the how Turkish Medical Association and professional associations and unions that share the same values with TMA form an opposing discourse, scrutinize how health became a primary ground of political debate, contestation and polarization in the Turkey of early 2000s. A extensive media-scanning covering the 2002-2011 period of both pro and anti- government newspapers, 2002, 2007 and 2011 election bulletins of Justice and Development Party and the publications of TMA are used as primary sources for this study.