Throughout the world, the recession is forcing governments to introduce reforms aimed at containing costs and increasing the efficiency of their health systems. As they consider policy options and implement reforms, interest in learning from other countries’ experience is growing.

To further this, the BMJ has established a formal link with the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (www.healthobservatory.eu/) and will publish a series of articles based on their work. The observatory was set up 12 years ago, as a partnership hosted by WHO, to promote cross country learning through comparative analysis of health system reforms. Its mission is to help politicians and policy makers base their reforms on the best available evidence.1

One way it does this is to generate and collate evidence in briefing papers which support the meetings held by the six monthly rotating presidencies of the European Council. The presidency provides member state’s health ministries with the opportunity to set (as well as …