Raising awareness of the determinants of high levels of functional disability in New Member States and its economic consequences at ECHE 2012

Five presentations were held from the FP7 ANCIEN project partners during this Session.  Markus Kraus and Monika Riedel from the Institute for Advanced Studies (IHS), Erika Schulz from the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) and Adelina Comas-Herrera from the London School of Economics and Political Science (PSSRU, LSE Health and Social Care) and CASE experts prof. Stanislawa Golinowska and Agnieszka Sowa were presenting results of the ANCIEN project.

Prof. Stanislawa Golinowska and Agnieszka Sowa focused their presentation on determinants of high levels of functional disability in the New Member States and its economic consequences (presentation attached). In their presentation they pointed out that the latest comparative international survey researches (EHCI, SHARE) and various country studies have shown a very high level of functional disability of the selected New Member States’ population (Poland, Hungary, Romania and the Baltic States).

The high level of disability of elderly population lowers the quality of their lives, extending time spent in poor health, and increases demand for long-term care. At the same time growing demand for care is a great challenge for health and social policy especially as long-term care institutions are highly underdeveloped.

This new situation creates pressure for involving strictly private sector or public-private mix in the provision of care and cost sharing, including individual co-payments, operation of private insurances. As a result the shape and forecast for development of long-term care institutions are different, although the dynamics of ageing is similar (in some countries even higher) than in Western Europe.

The presentation of prof. Stanislawa Solinowska and Agnieszka Sowa included statistical data and results of an analysis of the consequences of disabilities and ageing processes for support and care of disabled and elderly systems.