Swiss Policy, especially Health Policy
Federalism has been a fundamental principle of the Swiss Confederation since its founding in 1848. Federalism in this case means that the cantons, as member states, have a high degree of independence. In the ideal case, federalism results in laws and regulations that are tailored to local needs, which increases their acceptance and leads to constructive competition between the cantons and communes (for example, for lower taxes and other economic location advantages). There is a problem, however, in that this can raise government and administrative expenses. What is more, differences in the economic and legal systems can lead to additional costs for the public and for companies. In his research work on this multilevel system, Andreas Balthasar is examining the problems and opportunities of Swiss federalism between cooperation and competition as well as policy integration and separation, in particular in the area of health.
Projects and Publications
Balthasar; Andreas (im Erscheinen): Der Vollzug und die Wirkungen öffentlicher Politiken. in: Peter Knoepfel, Yannis Papadopoulos, Pascal Sciarini, Adrian Vatter, Silja Häusermann (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Schweizer Politik. Zürich: Verlag Neue Zürcher Zeitung.
Sager, Fritz; Ingold, Karin; Balthasar, Andreas (2017): Policy-Analyse in der Schweiz – Besonderheiten, Theorien, Beispiele (Reihe „Politik und Gesellschaft in der Schweiz“, Bd. 4). Neue Zürcher Zeitung NZZ Libro, Zürich.
Rieder, Stefan; Balthasar; Andreas; Kissling-Näf, Ingrid (im Erscheinen): Der Vollzug öffentlicher Politiken. in: Peter Knoepfel, Yannis Papadopoulos, Pascal Sciarini, Adrian Vatter, Silja Häusermann (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Schweizer Politik. Zürich: Verlag Neue Zürcher Zeitung.
Balthasar, Andreas (2010): Are there bases for evidence-based health policy in Switzerland? Factors influencing the extent of evaluation activity in health policy in the Swiss cantons. Evidence & Policy, 6 (3), S. 333–349.