User:Kristiedelvalle/Healthcare in Costa Rica

Reformed Healthcare Litigation
The development of the current public and private healthcare system in Costa Rica and its movement towards a progressive system came about as a response to a growing constitutional health rights in Costa Rica. The Supreme Court (the Sala IV) released litigations for medications, treatments, and other health care issues. Criticism from inside the health system regarding “the court’s jurisprudence elevated the right to health above financial considerations, and as a result posed a threat to the financial well-being of the state-run health care system."

A  2014 study researched successful health rights litigation and showed that less than 70% of favorable rulings were for low-priority medications in Costa Rica, revealing an unfair access to medications. To address these criticisms, the Sala IV partnered with the Cochrane Collaboration to integrate medical professional evaluations in its decision-making process for claims seeking access to medication. Then a new study was conducted researching the court’s reformed ruling process and whether it has changed in favor of the health rights conversation. It revealed that the probability of winning a medication lawsuit has increased drastically over time and that the percent of rulings granting experimental medications has declined while the percent granting high-priority medications increased. Based on the results, in comparison to the court’s pre-reform process, the reformed new process has led to some minor gains in fairness.