Evaluation of general health insurance in Türkiye within the perspective of social welfare state

The welfare state is one of the fundamental building blocks of modern societies and refers to a management approach in which the state assumes responsibility for ensuring the economic and social well-being of its citizens. This concept envisages the state not only ensuring security and public order, but also actively developing social policies in order to increase the quality of life of individuals and establish an egalitarian social structure. The welfare state has taken shape especially in Western Europe since the mid-20th century and has developed as an approach that requires the provision of basic services such as social security, education and health by the state. This study ex amines the organization of health services from the perspective of the welfare state and the General Health Insurance (GSS) system implemented in Turkey. Within the framework of welfare state models, health services are considered as a social citizenship right and it is aimed to provide equal access to individuals regardless of their income level. The GSS, which entered into force in Turkey in 2008, has created a more inclusive structure by aiming to unite the financing of health services under a single roof. In addition to the opportunities offered by the GSS, the structural problems encountered by the system in terms of sustainability, equality and accessibility have been analyzed in the study. In this context, Turkey's health policies are evaluated by comparing them with the welfare state principles.