{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,29]],"date-time":"2025-10-29T03:24:48Z","timestamp":1761708288826},"reference-count":56,"publisher":"Cambridge University Press (CUP)","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2009,1,20]],"date-time":"2009-01-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1232409600000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":5863,"URL":"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/terms"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["J. Soc. Pol."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[1993,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT<\/jats:title><jats:p>Up until very recently, the international debate on health inequality tended to disregard the issue of specifying equity objectives precisely. This was unfortunate, given the importance of normative analysis for understanding why people care about social justice in the field of health; the extent to which specific types of inequality are compatible with equity; how the concept should be measured; and how rational policies may be formulated and monitored. This article critically appraises six well established approaches to defining equity\u2014egality, entitlement, the decent minimum, utilitarianism, Rawlsian maximin, and envy-free allocations\u2014as well as two alternative formulations recently proposed by health economists\u2014equity as choice and health maximisation. All of these are found wanting in some respect when applied to the health sector. It is argued that Sen's \u2018capabilities\u2019 concepts, strangely ignored by health services researchers in the past, could prove an effective framework within which to organise research and policy formulation in the area of health and health care inequality.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1017\/s0047279400019097","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2009,1,20]],"date-time":"2009-01-20T14:59:25Z","timestamp":1232463565000},"page":"19-48","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":34,"title":["What does Equity in Health Mean?"],"prefix":"10.1017","volume":"22","author":[{"given":"Jo\u00e3o","family":"Pereira","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]}],"member":"56","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2009,1,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref038","volume-title":"Economics, Medicine and Health Care","author":"Mooney","year":"1986"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref034","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/2552375"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref031","volume-title":"Class and Health: Research and Longitudinal Data","author":"Le Grand","year":"1986"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref019","volume-title":"Health Plan: The Only Practical Solution to the Soaring Cost of Medical Care","author":"Enthoven","year":"1980"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref015","first-page":"146","article-title":"Health care needs and distributive justice","volume":"10","author":"Daniels","year":"1981","journal-title":"Philosophy and Public Affairs"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref013","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/oxrep\/5.1.34"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref018","first-page":"185","article-title":"What is equality","volume":"10","author":"Dworkin","year":"1981","journal-title":"Philosophy and Public Affairs"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref011","volume-title":"The Political Economy of Social Policy","author":"Culyer","year":"1980"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref010","volume-title":"Need and the National Health Service","author":"Culyer","year":"1976"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref009","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/2552845"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref043","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/1883182"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref007","volume-title":"Philosophy and Medical Welfare","author":"Broome","year":"1988"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref004","volume-title":"Superfairness: Applications and Theory","author":"Baumol","year":"1986"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref037","first-page":"179","article-title":"Equity in health care: confronting the confusion","volume":"1","author":"Mooney","year":"1983","journal-title":"Effective Health Care"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref008","unstructured":"Carr-Hill R. (1988), \u2018QuAIitY control: a sensitivity analysis of QALY's\u2019, paper presented to the meeting of the Health Economics Study Group, University of Brunel, July 1988."},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref002","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0022-0531(70)90039-6"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref001","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0047-2727(79)90013-6"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref020","volume-title":"The New Palgrave: A Dictionary of Economics","author":"Feldman","year":"1987"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref029","volume-title":"The Strategy of Equality: Redistribution and the Social Services","author":"Le Grand","year":"1982"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref030","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1468-5930.1984.tb00185.x"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref032","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/BF01047663"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref027","volume-title":"The Health Burden of Social Inequities","author":"Illsley","year":"1986"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref022","volume-title":"Acceptable Inequalities?","author":"Green","year":"1988"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref003","volume-title":"Les Ineqalite\u2018s Sociales en Santf en France et Grande-Bretagne","author":"Ayach","year":"1987"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref041","volume-title":"Anarchy, State and Utopia","author":"Nozick","year":"1974"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref040","volume-title":"The Standard of Living","author":"Muellbauer","year":"1987"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref035","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0277-9536(87)90036-0"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref006","volume-title":"Philosophy and Medical Welfare","author":"Bell","year":"1988"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref012","volume-title":"Acceptable Inequalities?","author":"Culyer","year":"1988"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref016","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0167-6296(87)90016-6"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref025","volume-title":"Philosophy and Medical Welfare","author":"Harris","year":"1988"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref033","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.4324\/9780203400098","volume-title":"Equity and Choice","author":"Le Grand","year":"1991"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref023","volume-title":"The Demand for Health: A Theoretical and Empirical Investigation","author":"Grossman","year":"1972"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref014","volume-title":"The Quality of Life: Perspectives and Policies","author":"Culyer","year":"1990"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref047","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/oxfordjournals.oep.a041587"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref039","article-title":"What does equity in health mean?","volume":"4","author":"Mooney","year":"1987","journal-title":"World Health Statistics Quarterly"},{"key":"S0047279400019097_ref036","unstructured":"Loomes G. 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