Impact and people
2011
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Inequities in health care access in the European region
06 October 2011
The objective of providing universal health coverage is high on the agenda of countries in the broader European region, yet vulnerable groups often do not have full access to health services, according to Dr. Xenia Scheil-Adlung, Health Policy Coordinator at the ILO’s Social Security Department. ILO Online spoke to Dr. Scheil-Adlung, who has published a study looking at the situation in the region, which includes the European Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States and Central and Eastern Europe.
2009
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Social security: Responding to the crisis
01 December 2009
The financial and economic crisis that began in 2007 has delivered a tumultuous two years for the financial world, sending many financial institutions into a tailspin and putting governments in difficulty. As one might expect with such an extensive crisis, social security systems have also been affected, and social security funds have suffered. A large number of these schemes witnessed a sharp contraction of their asset portfolio values in 2008, affecting their long-term sustainability. Nevertheless, social security systems have responded effectively to the test by softening the impact of the crisis. The challenge for social security now is to continue to cope with rising unemployment and the burden of future debt. Ian Orton, working for the International Social Security Association’s (ISSA) Social Security Observatory, looks at the impact of the crisis on social security.