Synopsis Health economics focuses on the efficiency (maximizing possible outputs from given inputs) and effectiveness (benefit from treatment or care) of resource allocation in the provisioning of health services infrastructure to meet health needs of individuals and society. Embodied in its domain is health care, which is multi-dimensional in character having such elements as public good with externalities, social merit want, private consumption good, human capital good, altruistic mind-set, etc as its components. Understanding health economics entails viewing it as a dependent variable based on such factors as (i) income (ii) education (iii) changes in the age structure (iv) improvement in medical technology (v) degree of illness of a patient and (vi) availability as well as accessibility of health care institutions etc. In such a framework, demand for or quantity of health care depends on the quality of medical care. Greater the quality of care, greater is the willingness to pay for the services received. The aforesaid discussion sets the tone of the present volume wherein different facets of health economics as well as its implications in different countries are delved upon through a bi-sectional approach. While the first section details the domain and scope of health economics apart from prescribing policies to ward off the lacunae, the other section portrays the economic impact as a result of differential health status in different parts of the globe.