Details
- Identification
- Economic Brief 088
- Publication date
- 27 January 2026
- Authors
- Boriana Goranova | Santiago Calvo Ramos | Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs
Description
This Economic Brief analyses the effects of the expected population ageing on the public expenditure on health care in the EU, discusses the different policy options and finally describes the activities in this field by the European Commission.
Highlights
- Ageing Report health care expenditure projections show that ageing will put upward pressure on public finances in the EU.
- Simultaneously, demographic trends will reduce the financial base for EU health systems.
- Structural reforms accompanied by well-targeted investments can be deployed to alleviate these effects.
- Reforms and investments are supported by the European Semester, and by EU funding, including the Recovery and Resilience Facility and other EU instruments.
- The new Economic Governance Framework, by allowing for more gradual fiscal adjustment for Member States against the commitment to implement reforms and investments, also provides incentives for reform.
Information and identifiers
Economic Brief 88. January 2026. Brussels. PDF. 24pp. Tab. Graph. Bibliogr. Free.
KC-01-25-040-EN-N (online)
ISBN 978-92-68-12544-1 (online)
ISSN 2443-8022 (online)
doi:10.2765/772825 (online)
JEL classification: H51, I18, J11.
Disclaimer
European Economy Economic Briefs are written by the staff of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs to inform discussion on economic policy and to stimulate debate. The views expressed in this document are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of the European Commission.
