Europe's ageing population: how will healthcare systems cope?

Europe’s Ageing Population and Sustainable Healthcare

Europe’s ageing population will require major changes to healthcare, speakers at a Brussels conference argued. By 2050, an estimated 37% of Europeans will be over 60.

The European Steering Group on Sustainable Healthcare, chaired by former Irish Health Minister Mary Harney, presented recommendations after developing about 30 pilot projects and gathering data for more than a year.

Shifting How Care Is Delivered

Harney said preserving high-quality, universally accessible care without rationing would require a radical shift in how services are delivered. This would mean intervening earlier and helping people take greater responsibility for managing their health.

The shift is especially important because chronic diseases affect more than 80% of people over 65 and account for an estimated €700 billion in annual healthcare spending. Speakers called for reorganising hospitals as well as community and home-based care.

Potential Benefits of Prevention and Early Intervention

Speakers highlighted several examples:

• A Madrid-based project targeting musculoskeletal problems reportedly reduced work-absence days by 40% among people with recent-onset work disability. Each euro invested was said to return €11 within a couple of years.
• Researchers in Rome estimated that healthier lifestyles leading to lower rates of overweight at age 50 could save Europe up to €100 billion by 2050. This estimate excluded the effects of medicines and other measures.
• Early treatment was also presented as a way to limit the severity of some conditions, including cancers that are increasingly managed as chronic diseases.

Access to Care

The EU Health Commissioner cautioned that structural reforms must assess their effects on public health and must not undermine access to care, described as a precondition for growth and jobs.

Speakers broadly agreed that prevention benefits both people and the economy, while acknowledging that putting it into practice remains a major challenge.

Presenters and Contributors

• Mary Harney
• An unnamed EU Health Commissioner
• Unnamed healthcare and research experts associated with the Madrid and Rome projects