The European journal of health economics : HEPAC : health economics in prevention and care
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The reforms that have reshaped the public health care systems have often been coupled with devolution. However, this process has frequently been accompanied by widespread soft budget constraint policies. ⋯ Our theoretical model is tested using data for Italian regions for the period 2002-2006 and our hypothesis is verified. Although the model uses Italy as a benchmark, we believe that the framework we propose could be extended to other federal contexts where resources are distributed unevenly and preferences are asymmetric.