PMID: 15242158Jul 10, 2004Paper

Unhealthy European health policy

International Journal of Health Services : Planning, Administration, Evaluation
Pol De VosPatrick Van der Stuyft

Abstract

The European Union claims that the defense of its welfare state is one of today's most important challenges. This article analyzes whether the European governments and the European Union really pursue a policy that strengthens their health and social security systems, or one that is in itself a threat to health and social security. After a summary of the origin and evolution of the European health systems, the authors pinpoint underlying reasons for reform and demonstrate how, since the 1990s, the European Union has built a strict financial and political straitjacket, forcing these systems to carry out privatization and cutbacks. Reform measures can be divided into three interdependent categories: (1) the increasing influence of governments on health care organization, to enable restructuring; (2) measures aimed at reducing public expenses, including higher financial contributions by patients and restrictions on the range of services provided; and (3) measures that establish competition and hidden or open privatization of services and insurance systems. Through these mechanisms public expenses are reduced while private health care expenses (and private profits) rise freely. Ongoing European health care reforms thus struggle wit...Continue Reading

References

Nov 25, 1998·International Journal for Quality in Health Care : Journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care·R Freeman
Jan 17, 2002·Clinical Medicine : Journal of the Royal College of Physicians of London·S M ThomsonE Mossialos

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Citations

Dec 3, 2014·Lancet·A David NapierKatherine Woolf
Dec 8, 2009·Lancet·Wim De Ceukelaire, Pol De Vos
Sep 28, 2006·Tropical Medicine & International Health : TM & IH·Pol De VosPatrick Van der Stuyft
Jun 29, 2011·Tropical Medicine & International Health : TM & IH·Wim De CeukelaireBart Criel
Jul 26, 2007·Conservation Biology : the Journal of the Society for Conservation Biology·Daniel J ZarinMarco Lentini
Sep 10, 2014·Global Public Health·Katerini T Storeng, Arima Mishra
Aug 19, 2006·Cadernos de saúde pública·Luisa Guimarães, Lígia Giovanella

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