Response of the International Monetary Fund to its critics.

The International Journal of Health Services recently (Volume 39, No. 4, 2009) published a series of articles by health care academics that made several claims regarding the design and impact of International Monetary Fund--supported programs, especially regarding effects on health spending and health outcomes. The Deputy Director of the IMF's Fiscal Affairs Department identifies and responds to six principal criticisms from these articles, to set the public record straight on what Fund policies actually are rather than what they are perceived to be.