EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DIRECTORATE GENERAL FOR RESEARCH WORKING PAPER HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS IN THE EU A COMPARATIVE STUDY Public Health and Consumer Protection Series SACO 101 EN This publication is available in the following languages: EN (original) DE FR The opinions expressed in this document are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position of the European Parliament. Reproduction and translation for non-commercial purposes are authorized, provided the source is acknowledged and the publisher is given prior notice and sent a copy. Publisher: EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT L-2929 LUXEMBOURG Author: Dr.med. Elke Jakubowski, MSc. HPPF, Advisor in Public Health Policy Department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine, Medical School Hannover Co-author: Dr.med. Reinhard Busse, M.P.H., Department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine, Medical School Hannover Editor: Graham R. Chambers BA Directorate-General for Research Division for Policies on Social Affairs, Women, Health and Culture Tel.: (00 352) 4300-23957 Fax: (00 352) 4300-27720 e-mail:
[email protected] WITH SPECIAL GRATITUDE TO: James Kahan, Panos Kanavos, Julio Bastida-Lopez, Elias Mossialos, Miriam Wiley, Franco Sassi, Tore Schersten, Juha Teperi for their helpful comments and reviews of earlier drafts of the country chapters, and Manfred Huber for additional explanatory remarks on OECD Health Data. The manuscript was completed in May 1998. EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DIRECTORATE GENERAL FOR RESEARCH WORKING PAPER HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS IN THE EU A COMPARATIVE STUDY Public Health and Consumer Protection Series SACO 101 EN 11-1998 Health Care Systems CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ........................................................... 5 PART ONE: A Comparative Outline of the Health Care Systems of the EU Member States ........................................