Although critical voices repeatedly complain about the increasing influence of basic economic concepts such as cost savings, efficiency improvements and rationalization in the Swiss healthcare system, more and more Swiss healthcare insurance premium and tax payers are suffering from the increasing weight of constantly rising healthcare costs. Advocates of a market economy framework appear to be gaining ground in the Swiss healthcare system, as was made clear by the “Initiative for a single social health insurance fund”, which was overwhelmingly rejected by over 71%. Medicine designed from a health economics perspective attempts to reconcile the “magic triangle” of cost efficiency, effectiveness and fairness (or “access for all”) for all stakeholders concerned.
