Abstract:
Since political reforms in 2011, the Myanmar government health expenditures have increased almost tenfold (2011-2017), reaching 4.2 percent of its total budget. While impressive, the amount still falls below global and regional standards. This paper argues that despite these efforts, problems related to governance and decentralization hampered the process. It concludes that both community and service providers acknowledge health system improvement, although with regional and ethnic group variations. Government health service was the main service provider especially for rural populations. Community providers point to the barriers in access to specialist health services in emergency scenarios, as well as travel distance barriers.
