Healthcare financialisation and the digital divide in the European Union: Narrative and numbers

Abstract Financialization in health care considers the exchange of goods and services as financial instruments. This paper uses multivariate statistical methods to provide comparative cross-country health analysis in two dimensions: ICT infrastructure (availability and access) and Health data (usage and sharing). Based on the quantitative indicators/metrics used in our study, our results reveal three distinct country grouping emerge: Frontrunners, Followers and Laggards. These groupings highlight vastly different socio-political and economic conditions facing national health systems, where health inequalities will only partially be alleviated by building capacity in ICT infrastructure and eHealth.