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Abstract
Over the past decade, some of the world's most stable parliamentary democracies have
witnessed a revival in right-wing populist political parties, movements and leaders.
Although there is a growing body of theoretical and empirical literature documenting
the rise of populism, there has been very little exploration of the implications for
health policy of this important political development. In this article, we draw from
three illustrative international cases, originating from the USA, the UK and Italy,
to explore the ways in which right-wing populism influences health policy: the election
of President Trump in the United States (and subsequent healthcare reforms), the United
Kingdom's vote to withdraw from the European Union (Brexit), and how this has played
out in the context of the UK National Health Service, and the rise of a politically
aligned anti-vaccination movement in Italy. Drawing on the work of the influential
socio-political theorist Ernesto Laclau, we interpret populism as a performative political
act, predicated on drawing logics of equivalence (and difference) between different
actors. We use this theoretical framing to explore the ways in which the recent upsurge
in right-wing populism creates a specific set of barriers and challenges for access
to healthcare and the health of populations.