Cost containment in Europe

Health care cost containment is not in itself a sensible policy objective, because any assessment of the appropriateness of health care expenditure in aggregate, as of that on specific programs, requires a balancing of costs and benefits at the margin. International data on expenditures can, however, provide indications of the likely impact on costs and expenditures of structural features of health care systems. Data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development for both European countries and a wider set are reviewed, and some current policies in Europe that are directed at controlling health care costs are outlined.