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Mortality in Greece Before and During the Recent Economic Recession: Short-Terms Effects of the Economic Austerity

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Quantitative Methods in Demography

Part of the book series: The Springer Series on Demographic Methods and Population Analysis ((PSDE,volume 52))

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Abstract

This article examines mortality trends in Greece from 1980 to 2019, a period characterized by extremely rapid economic growth at first and a deep recession after that. During these years, increases in life expectancies are recorded. These indicators can still mask marked differences in the transition from general mortality to specific causes of death, especially those most sensitive to socio-economic changes. To detect changes in trends that may be linked to the austerity policies and their consequences, an analysis of changes in the leading mortality indicators is undertaken, comparing the period before 2011 with recent years, marked by significant upheavals. Our results show a slowdown in the growth of life expectancies after 2010, an increase in infant mortality and death probability from suicide and certain diseases of the circulatory and respiratory system, infectious and parasitic diseases. Conversely, there has been a relatively large drop in the intensity of deaths from road accidents. Our work suggests that the substantial deterioration in Greece’s socio-economic situation has so far not had a significant effect on mortality. Although they do not reveal a health tragedy, some indicators deserve special attention. In fact, more time is needed to assess the likely effects of the crisis, as the deterioration of a population’s health does not automatically affect its mortality.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The GDP decrease was much higher than the average of the EU countries and the south European ones as in 2016, fell back to its 2003. Almost 850,000 jobs were lost between 2009 and 2016, equal to 20% of the employed population at the beginning of the crisis, and the employment rate for both sexes fell from almost 90% to 75%. During the same period, the number of job seekers increased faster than in all other European countries, almost exceeding 1.2 million people, and the unemployment rate almost tripled between 2009 and 2016.

  2. 2.

    Measures taken under the Economic Adjustment Program (PAE) after 2010 have contributed to an exceptionally rapid decline in public health expenditures, while more than a third of total health spending continues to be covered by households (including informal payments), one of the highest rates in the EU (European Commission, 2019). At the same time, between 2010 and 2017, the incomes of a large part of households composed mainly of the unemployed and retirees’ persons decreased considerably.

  3. 3.

    The authors however, they point out that “there is evidence supporting that the financial crisis will increase CVD prevalence, primarily because of Greeks adopting unhealthy dietary habits. Other parameters such as patients’ non-adherence to medical treatment, in the background of financial problems, or depression and anxiety should also be evaluated. As the austerity period is far from ending, the prevention and control of both conventional and emerging modifiable CVD risk factors is a goal that the Greek government and health care providers must strive to accomplish”.

  4. 4.

    In the first publication comparing Greece to Finland and Austria, the authors take 2008–2012 as a benchmark; in the second, they opt for 2007–2010, concluding that “significant gains in the health of the population in 2007–2010 are recorded in Greece, Slovakia, Spain, and the Baltic countries, where the recession was most severe and where austerity policies have been applied, at least from 2009”.

  5. 5.

    The collapse of the former socialist countries and the transition to a market economy in these former centrally planned economies is the only example of crisis immediate effects on mortality. In these countries, the likelihood of death had increased rapidly, often leading to a drop in their life expectancies.

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Funding

This article’s writing was supported by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (Research Project ‘Demographic Imperatives in Research and Practices in Greece’).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Demographic and Social Analyses (Lads), Department of Planning and Regional Development, School of Engineering, University of Thessaly, Thessaly, Greece

    Byron Kotzamanis

  2. Laboratory of Physical Anthropology, Department of History and Ethnology, Democritus University of Thrace, Komotini, Greece

    Konstantinos Zafeiris

  3. Laboratory of Stochastic Modelling and Applications, Department of Statistics, School ofInformation Studies and Technology, Athens University of Economics and Business, Athens, Greece

    Anastasia Kostaki

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  1. Byron Kotzamanis
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Correspondence to Konstantinos Zafeiris .

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  1. ManLab, Technical University of Crete, Chania, Greece

    Christos H. Skiadas

  2. Dept of Mathematics/Comp Science, Hanover College, Hanover, IN, USA

    Charilaos Skiadas

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Kotzamanis, B., Zafeiris, K., Kostaki, A. (2022). Mortality in Greece Before and During the Recent Economic Recession: Short-Terms Effects of the Economic Austerity. In: Skiadas, C.H., Skiadas, C. (eds) Quantitative Methods in Demography. The Springer Series on Demographic Methods and Population Analysis, vol 52. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-93005-9_11

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