Universalizing access in education, health, and social assistance

Social protection systems can provide crucial assistance to the poorest and most vulnerable groups in society, but not all systems are created equally.  In Latin America, social policies have historically exhibited large coverage gaps and high levels of inequality in benefit size.  Since the late 1990s, countries in the region have begun to grapple with these challenges, enacting a series of reforms to education, healthcare, and social assistance policy.  While some of these initiatives have been effective at boosting coverage and reducing inequality, others have maintained existing segmentation, and yet others have moved in a regressive direction.  What explains variation in the ability of Latin American states to universalize access to education, health, and social assistance programs?  This paper addresses this question in the context of Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Venezuela, presenting an original theory that focuses on the role of political parties, policy legacies, and political competition.