LSE Health Director, Elias Mossialos, has been engaged by the Austrian Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Consumer Protection to lead an evaluation of Austria’s social insurance system. The project, which began in late 2016, will evaluate key components of the Austrian system in order to develop a range of policy options aimed at improving the efficiency and quality of services available.
The project will begin with a thorough review of Austria’s healthcare system, focusing on social insurance, to map out the status quo of healthcare arrangements in the country.
Roundtable discussions will be held with key stakeholder groups including:
- social security institutions
- healthcare professional groups
- ministry partners
- International Evaluation Committee comprised of Professor Reinhard Busse, Professor Jeurissen and Ms Polton
- Professor Hoffman from Ernst & Young in Vienna and Professor Pfeil from the University of Salzburg
- within LSE Health, Professor Mossialos will be assisted by Jane Cheatley and Inna Thalmann
LSE Health will develop several policy options, with a key focus on the number of social insurance carriers, the variation in services they offer, and the necessity of separate accident insurance. The project will culminate with a report to the Ministry in July 2017.
Professor Mossialos commented that the project was an exciting opportunity for LSE Health to contribute to the future quality and sustainability of healthcare services in Austria.