Journal Articles

More Knowledge, Better Government? Consequences of Knowledge-Based Decision Making in Swedish Pharmaceutical Benefits

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Using an example from the health-care sector, we illustrate consequences of implementing knowledge-based decision making relating to the exercise of political control. The Swedish Pharmaceutical Benefits Board decides the subsidization status of prescription pharmaceuticals. Building on a study of the agency's work, we explore the effects of institutional arrangements stemming from rationalistic demands for knowledgeable and justifiable outcomes related to political structures for control. Knowledge about the medical and economic effects of pharmaceuticals is routinely ambiguous. This makes it necessary to negotiate “decision-able” knowledge rather than to merely collect it. This touches on matters of broader political consequence, which the formal model for governing the administration does not take into account. This masks decisions as neutral administrative choices. A further conclusion concerns the lack of mechanisms for repoliticizing politically salient issues that have been delegated to administrative bodies.

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Detail Information

Series Title

Governance

Call Number

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Publisher

Hoboken, United States : Wiley-Blackwell., 2011

Collation

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Language

English

ISBN/ISSN

09521895

Classification

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Content Type

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Media Type

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Carrier Type

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Edition

Volume 24, Issue 1, January 2011. pages 85–110

Subject(s)

More Knowledge, Better Government

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Statement of Responsibility

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