Pharmaceutical policies are interlinked globally, yet deeply rooted in local culture. "Prescribing Cultures" examines how pharmaceuticals and their regulation play an important and often contentious role in the health systems of the Asia-Pacific.

The first section of this timely book--which includes a foreword by Michael Reich of Harvard University--addresses pharmaceutical policy in China, Korea, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, Australia, and India. The second section focuses on two crosscutting themes: differences in "prescribing cultures," especially among physicians, who are the primary...

The world's two most populous countries face numerous policy challenges from rapid demographic change, including gender imbalance, population aging, and rapid urbanization. Drawing on social science expertise from China, India, and the United States, the contributors examine the social and economic challenges for policy across a range of domains, from family planning and old-age support to human capital investment, poverty alleviation, and broader issues of governance.