Trends in EU Health Care Systems [Paperback]

The nations of the EU have long led the world in universal health coverage. Recent economic developments have created problems ranging from inequities of care to growing numbers of uninsured  a progression analyzed by Win de Gooijer in Trends in EU Health Care Systems. His ideas may be startling, and the book is bound to be controversial. This is critical reading for health care managers and policymakers, politicians and insurors - anyone looking to Europe to understand this far-reaching evolution.

For decades, the nations of the European Union wrote the book on universal health coverage. Recent economic developments, however, have created problems ranging from widening inequities of care to growing numbers of uninsured - a progression expertly described by Win de Gooijer in Trends in EU Health Care Systems.

De Gooijers dual background as an economist and the CEO of Dutch health care corporations, together with his broad international experience, give him a unique understanding of his subject. He traces world economic currents that have affected quality of and access to health care throughout the EU - trends that took years to develop, but are coming to rapid fruition. Comparative illustrations from Europe and the US show national interests at odds with global ones, as governments transfer social responsibilities to market-driven agencies. Included in his discussion:

- Expansion versus reform: a forty-year analysis of Europes health care systems

- Why governments cannot completely control the always-evolving dynamics of health care

- Ethical and medical issues arising from the continents changing politics

- Predictions on future directions in EU health carehow much change is possible, how much is necessary.

Some may find De Gooijers ideas startling, and the book is bound to be the subject of controversy. But it is critical readlg