Wednesday, October 3, 2007

[EQ] Economic implications of health inequalities in the European Union

Economic implications of health inequalities in the European Union

Prof. Dr. Johan (J.P.) Mackenbach, Dr. Willem Jan (W.J.) Meerding, Dr Anton (A.E.) Kunst
Erasmus MC - Department of Public Health -  Rotterdam -The Netherlands
University Medical Centre Rotterdam
The European Commission - July 2007

Available online PDF [166p.] at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_determinants/socio_economics/documents/socioeco_inequalities_en.pdf 
 
 
"....The authors first calculated the inequalities related losses to population health in the European Union in 2004. 
They then estimated various economic effects of those health losses, including health care costs, costs of social
security schemes, losses to Gross Domestic Product through reduced labour productivity, and the monetary value 
of total losses in welfare.
Inequalities-related losses to health amount to more than 700,000 deaths per year, and 33 million prevalent cases 
of ill-health, in the European Union as a whole. These losses account for 20% of the total costs of health care, 
and 15% of the total costs of social security benefits. Inequalities-related losses to health also reduce labour productivity 
and take 1.4% off GDP each year. The total monetary value of health inequalities-related welfare losses is in the 
order of €1000 billion per year......"
 
".....Most analyses of the relationship between health and the economy focus on average health, but health is actually 
very unevenly distributed across society. In all countries with available data, significant differences in health exist 
between socioeconomic groups, in the sense that people with lower levels of education, occupation and/or income 
tend to have systematically higher morbidity and mortality rates. 
 
These health inequalities are one of the main challenges for public health, and there is a great potential for improving
average population health by eliminating or reducing the health disadvantage of lower socioeconomic groups. 
This requires an active engagement of many policy sectors, not only of the public health and health care systems, 
but also of education, social security, working life, city planning, etcetera.
 
A fruitful dialogue between the public health and health care sector on the one hand, and other policy areas on the 
other hand, is likely to be facilitated if the economic benefits of reducing health inequalities were be made clear. 
It is the purpose of this report to explore the economic implications of health inequalities in the European Union. 
 
It addresses four specific questions:
- Firstly, how should we conceptualize the ‘economic impact’ of socioeconomic inequalities in health, and how can we measure this? 
- Secondly, how large are socioeconomic inequalities in health in the European Union, and what is the magnitude of the burden of
  ill health and premature mortality associated with inequalities in health?
- Thirdly, what is the economic impact of socioeconomic inequalities in health in the European Union? And
- finally, what actions can reasonably be taken to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in health, and what are the potential economic
  benefits of investing in these strategies?


Our conceptual framework is based on the notion that health is both a ‘consumption good’ and a ‘capital good’. As a ‘consumption good’, health directly contributes to an individual’s ‘happiness’ or ‘satisfaction’, and as a ‘capital good’, health is an important component of the value of human beings as means of production. Our analysis has tried to attach a monetary value to the inequalities-related losses to population health in the European Union by combining these two complementary perspectives.

 
Contents 
Executive summary
1. Introduction
2. Framework for assessing the economic implications of socioeconomic inequalities in health
3. Estimates of the magnitude of socioeconomic inequalities in morbidity and mortality in Europe
4. Estimates of the economic costs of socioeconomic inequalities in health in Europe
5. Potential economic benefits of policies to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in health
6. Preliminary conclusions and evaluation of caveats
7. Implications for health policy and for future research and data collection
References

Appendices
A. General overview of socioeconomic inequalities in health in Europe
B. Literature review of effects of health on economic outcomes
C. The impact of health on economic outcomes: analysis of the European Community Household Panel
D. Estimates of the economic impact of health inequalities in the EU-25 in 2004
E. Effects of policies to reduce health inequalities: the example of smoking inequalities and tobacco control
 
 
  

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This message from the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO/WHO, is part of an effort to disseminate
information Related to: Equity; Health inequality; Socioeconomic inequality in health; Socioeconomic
health differentials; Gender; Violence; Poverty; Health Economics; Health Legislation; Ethnicity; Ethics;
Information Technology - Virtual libraries; Research & Science issues.  [DD/ IKM Area]

"Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
and interpretations included in the Materials are those of the authors and not necessarily of The Pan American
Health Organization PAHO/WHO or its country members".

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[EQ] The Future Direction of General Practice - A roadmap

         The Future Direction of General Practice - A roadmap

The Royal College of General Practitioners, London - September 2007 (UK)

Available online PDF [84p.] at: http://www.rcgp.org.uk/PDF/Roadmap_embargoed%2011am%2013%20Sept.pdf

".....This sets out a vision for patient services in primary care in the 21st century. The roadmap provides a blue print for the delivery of services to patients and firmly establishes the discipline of family medicine. It shows how primary care can be scaled up by GPs to bring about major advances in clinical care using a new model of care and sets out a world-class vision for tackling crucial issues such as health inequalities and access...."

"....The status quo is not sustainable. Fragmentation of care, health inequalities and urgent care must be addressed. Furthermore, if we are to meet the health needs of patients over the coming years, we will need to bring about a radical change in the quality, organisation and delivery of services..."
 

Content:

I Executive summary

1. Introduction
2. General practice in a changing world

II How can we serve patients better?

3. The nature and values of general practice
4. Improving the organisation of primary care
5. Providing a greater range of services and diagnostics in primary care
6. Improving access and continuity of care
7. Developing stronger integrated primary healthcare teams
8. Developing the functions of general practice-based care
9. Making the best use of GPs’ skills

III Bringing it all together: how do we get there?

10. The future model of care: enabling the exceptional potential of primary care Appendices

 

*     *      *     *

This message from the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO/WHO, is part of an effort to disseminate
information Related to: Equity; Health inequality; Socioeconomic inequality in health; Socioeconomic
health differentials; Gender; Violence; Poverty; Health Economics; Health Legislation; Ethnicity; Ethics;
Information Technology - Virtual libraries; Research & Science issues.  [DD/ IKM Area]

"Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
and interpretations included in the Materials are those of the authors and not necessarily of The Pan American
Health Organization PAHO/WHO or its country members".

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAHO/WHO Website: http://www.paho.org/
EQUITY List - Archives - Join/remove:
http://listserv.paho.org/Archives/equidad.html

    IMPORTANT: This transmission is for use by the intended recipient and it may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient or a person responsible for delivering this transmission to the intended recipient, you may not disclose, copy or distribute this transmission or take any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately by email to infosec@paho.org, and please dispose of and delete this transmission. Thank you.