In times of shrinking budgets, the funds available for health and social affairs are under threat. The approach taken by Europe’s health experts to confront this is one of the central issues being discussed at the EHFG 2025. Its main theme is: “Rethinking solidarity in health: healing Europe’s fractured social contract”.
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The war in Ukraine has brought destruction, death and physical injuries, but it has also left deep psychological wounds. A project by the European Union was set up to provide relief.
People who are most in need of healthcare often have the worst access. Measures to reduce social and health inequalities include the European Pillar of Social Rights and a research project on “social vulnerability indices”.
Health-harming products cause illness, suffering and death among many people. Better regulation is needed for production and sales.
Demographic change is making it increasingly difficult to hire employees, particularly in the care and health sector. To counteract this, we need to make workplaces more attractive.
Citizen participation in decision-making that relates to a country’s health system can help to improve it – as long as the process is genuine and the findings are taken seriously.
A European Union project in Austria, Belgium and Slovenia aims to strengthen the capacities of Member States for accessing EU funding that could be used to support health system reforms.
Buurtzorg, the self-managed healthcare service in the Netherlands, is considered a model of success. It demonstrates how the structures in the health system can be improved for the benefit of patients and employees.
The countries and population groups that have contributed least to climate change are suffering most from it. Climate justice is about redressing the balance.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Commission has taken initial steps towards forming a European Health Union. Many public health representatives believe that further-reaching measures should follow.