How taxes keep us healthy
Taxes play an important role in ensuring Europe has effective, accessible and resilient health systems and the resources to invest in disease prevention.
Access to high-quality healthcare systems is a key objective of social protection systems in Europe. To achieve this, EU countries use a range of contribution mechanisms to finance healthcare, one of which is through tax contributions from the public.
Collected taxes go towards a range of health products and services including medical products, appliances and equipment and outpatient services to hospital and public health services and research and development related to health.
According to Eurostat, general government expenditure in the EU on public health services amounted to EUR 1080 billion in 2017. This accounted for 7 % of gross domestic product (GDP). Breaking this figure down further, hospital services accounted for 3.2% of GDP, outpatient services for 2.2 % of GDP and medical products, appliances and equipment for 1 % of GDP. The countries which spent the most on health expenditure were Norway, Denmark, Austria and France. The smallest reported government expenditure on health came from Switzerland, Cyprus, and Latvia.
A spotlight on the novel coronavirus
Tax contributions from the public are also vital for the prevention and treatment of diseases as in the case of the novel coronavirus epidemic.
On the 31 January 2020, the European Commission announced that it is boosting research into the coronavirus with EUR 10 million from its research and innovation programme, Horizon 2020. An emergency request for expressions of interest has been launched for research projects that will advance our understanding of the novel coronavirus epidemic, contribute to more efficient clinical management of patients infected with the virus, as well as public health preparedness and response.
This action has come at a time when the World Health Organization has declared the new coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. The coronavirus, a large family of viruses found both in animals and humans continues to spread in China and beyond with cases being reported in Europe.
The funding aims to support two to four research projects, with the Commission using all means to enable research work to start immediately. Stella Kyriakides, Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, issued the following statement: “We need to see a multifaceted, whole-of-government response to the Coronavirus and research is an essential part of this. We need to know more about the virus to better target our prevention measures and to ensure better care for our citizens – this is precisely the aim of the Horizon 2020 emergency research funding announced today.”
The role TAXEDU
The TAXEDU digital platform is spreading awareness among young people about the importance and benefits of tax collection for society which includes investing in a healthier Europe. Teachers can find interactive and exciting resources on the portal’s Training Catalogue which are helping to give real meaning to the role of taxes in young people’s lives.