The role of healthcare in reducing inequalities and poverty in the EU

Strengthening the resilience of health systems is a cornerstone in the path towards completing the European Health Union. The Covid-19 pandemic underscored the critical need for better-prepared health systems capable of withstanding future shocks. This encompasses not only the long-term capacity of health systems to respond to similar health crisis in the future, but also the ability to respond to broader challenges such as economic downturns, demographic changes or the cost of new technologies. Gaps in access to healthcare weaken health systems' resilience and risk entrenching existing health inequalities. Ensuring an effective response to future challenges will therefore require managing health systems efficiently, even with limited resources, while not compromising on the fundamental right to healthcare for all. Moreover, as advocated by the report of Professor Draghi on the future of European Competitiveness, policies fostering economic growth must go hand-in-hand with social inclusion. Building resilient and inclusive health systems is essential to achieve these objectives. This report includes results of the project "The role of healthcare in reducing inequalities and poverty in the EU", funded under the programme. The project developed an innovative methodology and metrics to assess access to healthcare across EU Member States (MS). This approach enables the analyses of the distributional impact of providing and funding health- related Social Transfers in-Kind (STiKs). This toolkit helps to improve transparency and more informed decision-making by gauging the social effects of various health reform scenarios. It can also inform budget policies, highlighting the value of prioritising and safeguarding universal health coverage in times of tight fiscal space.