### Investing in health for a competitive, secure, and resilient Europe: A strategic call to action by PHSSR’s EU Expert Advisory Group

PHSSR's report into sustainable healthcare financing in Europe

[Click to read the report](https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_PHSSR_European_Union_Investing_in_Health_2025.pdf)

Europe stands at a crossroads. Facing war on its borders, global power shifts and trade disruptions, inflationary pressure, and widening social disparities, Europe’s ability to remain competitive and cohesive depends on its internal resilience. Nowhere is this more evident than in the health systems that underpin its prosperity. But despite hard-learned lessons during COVID-19, health now risks being politically sidelined again, overtaken by other priorities such as defence, migration, and EU enlargement.Now, cross-sectoral EU and national experts have come together to publish consensus recommendations to effectively enhance the EU’s investment in health and drive Europe’s security, competitiveness and resilience. Convened by PHSSR, the EU Expert Advisory Group includes policymakers, experts with direct experience from both EU and national health authorities, academics, researchers, and patient representatives.Their report, 'Investing in health for a competitive, secure, and resilient Europe: A strategic call to action’, has just been published. It sends a clear message that achieving EU and Member States' economic and social goals requires greater strategic investment in health under the EU Multiannual Financial Framework (2028-2034). The PHSSR EU Expert Advisory Group warns the sustainability of Europe’s health systems is not a sectoral issue - it is a strategic imperative. Failing to act now will undermine not only Europe’s health, but also its productivity, sustainability, social cohesion, and geopolitical relevance.Health is a high-return strategic investment - not a budgetary burdenViewing health expenditure merely as a budgetary pressure is a mistake. When well-targeted, health investments deliver immense returns. For example, every euro invested in the early detection of non-communicable diseases, a critical area of focus for the EU, can yield up to €4.90[1]. Returns on health investments generally have been projected to reach as high as up to €14[2], and yet preparedness and prevention remain undervalued.Why all stakeholders must act nowThis report sends a direct message to ministers of finance, health, and innovation. Health sustains:Economic competitiveness: Fostering a healthy, capable workforce drives productivity.Strategic autonomy and defence: Health systems are as vital to security as energy or military.Demographic resilience: Under-resourced systems risk collapsing under ageing populations.Climate and crisis preparedness: Resilient health systems are essential to manage the increasing frequency of climate-driven health shocks and future pandemics. Closing the competitiveness gap: Health is a cornerstone of industrial policyHealth is not just a public service - it is a powerhouse of economic value. Robust investments in health fuel industrial competitiveness and scientific leadership, an area where Europe is losing ground to other regions. In 2022, the US invested roughly $892 billion in total R&D, with pharmaceuticals as a major focus. This far outpaced the EU’s €381 billion R&D spend in 2023, highlighting a persistent transatlantic gap in medical innovation investment[3],[4].Geopolitics has made health a strategic domain Health is now a frontline geopolitical issue. Europe’s health systems must be resilient to pandemics and biothreats, climate-related shocks, supply chain disruptions, population displacement, and other geopolitical pressures.The PHSSR EU Expert Advisory Group’s recommendationsIn its report, PHSSR proposes a two-pillar approach:Pillar A: Align EU health investments with broader strategic goals. Integrate health into frameworks for competitiveness, digital transformation, and security. Establish EU-level stress tests and benchmarks to track progress and enhance accountability. Pillar B: Improve fund governance and transparency. Establish an EU Health Investment Hub to support access to funding, particularly at local and rural levels, and promote knowledge sharing across Member States. The PHSSR EU Expert Advisory Group’s call to action to EU institutions and Member StatesPrioritise health and place it at the heart of Europe’s strategic investment agenda. Integrate health policy into frameworks for competitiveness, innovation, defence, and climate readiness. Secure retained levels and ringfenced EU health funding in the next Multiannual Financial Framework with long-term predictability. Advance smarter, more accountable spending to maximise cross-sector benefits and patient mobility.

References:1. EFPIA. (2025). The case for investing in a healthier future for the European Union: summary report. Retrieved from https://www.efpia.eu/media/xpkbiap5/the-case-for-investing-in-a-healthier-future-for-the-european-union.pdf.2. Masters, R., Anwar, E., Collins, B., Cookson, R., & Capewell, S. (2017). Return on investment of public health interventions: a systematic review. Journal of epidemiology and community health, 71(8), 827–834. https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2016-208141.3. National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. (2025). U.S. R&D Totaled $892 Billion in 2022; Estimate for 2023 Indicates Further Increase to $940 Billion. Retrieved from https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf25327#.4. Eurostat. (2024). R&D expenditure: Highlights. Retrieved from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=R%26D_expenditure.