284,000 Liver Deaths a Year in Europe: Experts Demand Higher Taxes on Booze and Junk Food

A new report warns that liver-related illnesses are creating an “escalating and unsustainable burden” on European healthcare systems, killing 284,000 people across the continent every year. In response, public health experts are urging governments to sharply raise taxes on alcohol and unhealthy foods — targeting the very products driving the crisis.

The proposed tax hikes would specifically hit items linked to liver disease, including alcoholic beverages and ultra-processed junk food. According to the report, the additional revenue generated should be high enough to cover the massive costs these products impose on health services, the criminal justice system, and social services [137094]. Experts argue that current pricing does not reflect the true societal damage caused by these goods.

Meanwhile, public health systems across the continent are already struggling. In the United Kingdom, a new study by the Health Foundation reveals that people now spend fewer years in good health than they did a decade ago. The measure, called “healthy life expectancy,” has dropped in the UK even as it has risen in most other wealthy nations, with experts warning that Britain is “going backwards” [133891].

Germany is also facing pressure. The country’s Cabinet has approved a draft healthcare reform law aimed at lowering insurance rates, which Chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz called “historic.” However, doctors’ associations and patient protection groups warn the plan is essentially a set of austerity measures that could reduce care quality rather than improve affordability [136453].

The situation highlights a stark divide: while some European nations struggle with declining health and strained budgets, other parts of the world are pursuing different strategies. In Africa, global health gains over the last 20 years have saved millions of lives through expanded primary care and HIV treatment. The focus now shifts to achieving universal health coverage by 2030, with experts saying the strategy will likely depend on using digital tools and technology to make health systems faster and more efficient [23147].

But technology alone is not a cure-all. In El Salvador, a new app screens users for chronic illnesses and sends those at risk to private labs for tests and specialist consultations, using artificial intelligence to assist with diagnoses. However, the program raises concerns about its cost and the security of patient data [135504].

Even basic prevention is under pressure. In countries hit hardest by malaria, public health systems are forced to do more with less money. The Malaria Consortium argues that combining multiple life-saving services into a single patient visit can dramatically improve results, reducing costs and protecting more people from the disease [136787].

Meanwhile, the toll of chronic disease is deeply personal. For women with lupus, pregnancy can push already damaged kidneys into failure. One patient, Fatimah Shepherd, faces a difficult choice: protect her health or try to become a mother [135191].

As Europe debates taxes on alcohol and junk food, the underlying question remains: who pays — and who suffers — when health is treated as a commodity?