Changing Origins of Inequalities in Access to Healthcare in Turkey: From Occupational Status to Income?

Access to healthcare services remains as one of the key components of social citizenship. Healthcare reforms, in this regard, are significant arenas within which parameters of social citizenship are being negotiated. Turkey’s healthcare system, despite its success in the establishment of public health insurance schemes and public provision of healthcare services, had been at the center of criticisms due to inequalities it generated in access to healthcare services among citizens. With the promise of instituting equality in access to healthcare services, Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power and launched Transformation in Health program in 2003. Since then, Turkey’s healthcare system has been undergoing a significant transformation process and new terms of social citizenship has been set. This paper will investigate the impact of Transformation in Health program on access to health care services from the perspective of equal citizenship status. Main argument of this paper is the following: On the one hand, this transformation clearly had positive impacts on access to healthcare services by abolishing occupational status-based inequalities. On the other hand, however, this article suggests that the current healthcare reform changes the main origin of inequalities in access to healthcare from occupational status to income.