Health care systems across the European Union face a common challenge: the high cost of health care. Governments strive to ensure that cost pressures do not undermine values such as universal coverage and equitable financing and access. Focusing on the three health care financing functions - collection pooling and purchasing - as well as on coverage this book analyses the organization of health care financing in the Member States of the European Union discusses the principal financing reform trends of recent years and assesses their capacity to help ensure fiscal sustainability. The book inclu