Journal profile · PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
World Medical & Health Policy
ISSN 1948-4682 · Wiley-Blackwell
World Medical & Health Policy: CAS Zone 4 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.6 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,900; median 153 days to acceptance (87 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 22% (journal website); 66 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
World Medical & Health Policy is published by Wiley-Blackwell and is in Zone 4 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Global Public Health Policies and Epidemiology, Healthcare Policy and Management and Healthcare Systems and Reforms, together about 25.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are General Health Professions. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
World Medical & Health Policy is a quarterly, peer-reviewed journal that considers the many factors shaping global health. We publish articles employing overlapping disciplines that include health policy and politics, political science, health economics, medical ethics, and public health. The journal’s approach is unified by a thoroughgoing concern with critically examining the contexts within which policy is made, as well as more traditional considerations of processes, outcomes, and influences. In converting empirical evidence into policy, World Medical & Health Policy helps policymakers design and promote programs that improve health outcomes, particularly for vulnerable populations. By bringing a global policy perspective to medical practice, the journal navigates the often-tangled world of global economic imperatives, international diplomacy, international agreements, the law, natural and humanmade disasters, humanitarian interventions, the social determinants of health, and local and international standards of care. The journal is committed to publishing practitioners’ opinions and case studies alongside academic research articles. Disclaimer The Publisher, Policy Studies Organization, and Editors cannot be held responsible for errors or any consequences arising from the use of information contained in this journal; the views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Publisher, Policy Studies Organization, and Editors, neither does the publication of advertisements constitute any endorsement by the Publisher, Policy Studies Organization, and Editors of the products advertised. Abstracting and Indexing Information Abstracts on Hygiene & Communicable Diseases (CABI) AgBiotechNet (CABI) Agricultural Economics Database (CABI) Biomedical Reference Collection (EBSCO Publishing) CAB Abstracts® (CABI) Dairy Science Abstracts (CABI) Embase (Elsevier) Emerging Sources Citation Index (Clarivate Analytics) Environmental Impact (CABI) Global Health (CABI) Leisure Tourism Database (CABI) Nutrition & Food Sciences Database (CABI) Nutrition Abstracts & Reviews Series A: Human & Experimental (CABI) Plant Protection Database (CABI) Rural Development Abstracts (CABI) SCOPUS (Elsevier) Soil Science Database (CABI) Soils & Fertilizers Abstracts (CABI) TROPAG & RURAL (CABI) Tropical Diseases Bulletin (CABI) Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics) World Agricultural Economics & Rural Sociology Abstracts (CABI)
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
Editor-in-chief Articles MostPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 2%); most named United States 31, United Kingdom 3, India 3, Italy 2, Australia 2 (60 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Global Public Health Policies and EpidemiologyBusiness, Management and Accounting10.3%
- Healthcare Policy and ManagementEconomics, Econometrics and Finance7.9%
- Healthcare Systems and ReformsEconomics, Econometrics and Finance7.6%
- Global Maternal and Child HealthMedicine7.5%
- Global Health Care IssuesHealth Professions5.3%
- Food Security and Health in Diverse PopulationsHealth Professions5.2%
- Health Systems, Economic Evaluations, Quality of LifeEconomics, Econometrics and Finance3.8%
- Health disparities and outcomesSocial Sciences3.7%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceMEDLINEPubMedEmbaseCAB AbstractsPublisher website
Other: EBSCO
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.1LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.1Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.43LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.61LetPub ·
- h-index
- 32OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 142OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.45OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 6.2%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 46.49%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 51LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 54Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 83,782Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 978 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 39 | 21 | 7 |
| 2025 | 66 | 39 | 64 |
| 2024 | 56 | 37 | 163 |
| 2023 | 43 | 34 | 120 |
| 2022 | 72 | 23 | 350 |
| 2021 | 113 | 34 | 778 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
153 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 103 days – 222 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 25 days (87 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 181 days
- Sample
- 87 articles with submission and acceptance dates (111 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 22%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 14 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 166 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 30 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 2,900 / EUR 2,450 / GBP 1,930 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare2 items from the author guidelines
- Reference style
- APA
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Data availability, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- Authorship Authorship
All listed authors should have contributed to the manuscript substantially and have agreed to the final submitted version. Review editorial standards and scroll down for a description of authorship criteria.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Sharing and Data Availability
This journal encourages data sharing. Review Wiley’s Data Sharing policy where you will be able to see and select the data availability statement that is right for your submission.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Reproduction of Copyright Material
If excerpts from copyrighted works owned by third parties are included, credit must be shown in the contribution. It is your responsibility to also obtain written permission for reproduction from the copyright owners. For more information visit Wiley’s Copyright Terms & Conditions FAQ.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access
Subscription journal that offers an open access option. You’ll have the option to choose to make your article open access after acceptance, which will be subject to an APC. You can read more about APCs and whether you may be eligible for waivers or discounts, through your institution, funder, or a country waiver.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review
This journal operates under a double-anonymized peer review model. Papers will only be sent to review if the Editor-in-Chief determines that the paper meets the appropriate quality and relevance requirements. In-house submissions, i.e. manuscripts authored by Editors or Editorial Board members of the title, will be sent to Editors unaffiliated with the author or institution and monitored carefully…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprint policy:
Please find the Wiley preprint policy here.This journal accepts articles previously published on preprint servers.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- ISSN
- 1948-4682
- Society / sponsor
- Policy Studies Organization
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 18, Issue 3 (September 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about World Medical & Health Policy
What CAS zone is World Medical & Health Policy in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, World Medical & Health Policy is in Zone 4 of Medicine, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Public, Environmental & Occupational Health. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of World Medical & Health Policy?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1.6 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 2.1, h-index 32.
How long does peer review take at World Medical & Health Policy?
Based on the dates recorded on 87 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 153 days (interquartile range 103–222 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 22% (2025). Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of World Medical & Health Policy?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Reference style: APA; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of World Medical & Health Policy based?
Of the 60 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 2%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (31), United Kingdom (3) and India (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index World Medical & Health Policy?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, World Medical & Health Policy is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science, MEDLINE, PubMed, Embase and CAB Abstracts; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is World Medical & Health Policy open access, and what is the APC?
World Medical & Health Policy is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,900.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .