Health

Health and the Healthcare Economy: Driving OECD Prosperity and Competitiveness into the Next Decade

Date

01 December 2026

Location

OECD Auditorium, 46 Quai Alphonse le Gallo, 92100, Boulogne Billancourt

Time

09:00 - 16:00 CET

Returning for its 8^th edition, the Health Forum has become a vital policy convening platform that unites business leaders, OECD delegates, global stakeholders and government representatives to shape the future of health. Based on the evolution of our Business at OECD "Stronger Together" campaign, outcomes of the 2025 Forum and discussions already held in 2026, this year’s Forum should move one step beyond making the case that health is an investment. The next frontier is how governments operationalise health as a competitiveness, productivity, and growth strategy. This theme places health alongside transport, energy and digital infrastructure as a productive asset underpinning economic growth.

Agenda

09:00 - 09:30

Welcome and Registration

09:30 – 09:45

Opening Remarks

09:45 – 10:00

Keynote Speech - Health and Competitiveness in a Fragmenting World Economy

10:00 – 11:00

Panel 1 - The Productivity Imperative: Health's Contribution to Growth, Labour Markets, and Competitiveness

As the OECD's economies face ageing populations, growing multimorbidity, workforce shortages and slowing productivity growth, this panel will explore how healthier populations, stronger health systems and strategic investment in healthcare innovations can drive labour participation, economic competitiveness and long-term prosperity.

11:00 – 11:30

Coffee Break

11:30 – 12:20

Audience Discussion 1 - Technology for Smarter Health Systems: Driving Efficiency, Value and Better Outcomes

This interactive dialogue will explore how emerging technologies, digital tools and new models of care can help health systems improve efficiency, reduce waste, personalise care, and deliver better outcomes while supporting long-term sustainability.

12:20 - 13:30

Networking Lunch

13:30 - 14:40

Panel 2 - Partnering with G7 and G20: Role of Health and Life Sciences for Competitive Economies

This panel will provide an opportunity to exchange perspectives on the contribution of health and life sciences to economic growth, resilience, and long-term prosperity. The discussion will reflect on the outcomes of the current G7/G20 Presidencies, explore emerging G7/G20 priorities, and discuss how business, OECD, and governments can work together to build more competitive economies in the decade ahead.

14:40 - 15:00

Coffee Break

15:00 - 15:50

Audience Discussion 2 - The Prevention Economy: Can Governments Afford Not to Invest Upstream?

This interactive discussion will examine how governments can move from recognising preventive care as a public-health priority to operationalising it as a competitiveness, productivity and growth strategy. It will explore what must change in fiscal, labour-market, data and governance frameworks for preventive care to be recognized as productive economic infrastructure rather than residual health expenditure. The discussion will focus on measurable preventive care interventions across the life course, including immunization, screening, early detection and innovative medical interventions that prevent disease progression and complications, which provide practical use cases for fiscal assessment, productivity analysis and policy evaluation.

15:50 – 16:00

Concluding Remarks