About the book DRG systems were introduced in Europe for similar reasons: first, they should increase the transparency of services which are effectively provided in hospitals and second, DRG-based payment systems should give incentives for the efficient use of resources. In addition, the combination of increased transparency and efficient use of resources was assumed to contribute to improving -- or at least assuring -- the level of quality of care. Today, after more than a decade of experience with using DRGs in Europe, it's time to consider whether the extensive use of DRGs has contributed towards achieving these aims. This book is a result of the EuroDRG project. It includes chapters on the key issues of DRGs (efficiency, quality, unintended effects, and technological innovation) and 12 country chapters (Austria, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden) that provide clearly structured and detailed information about the most important DRG system characteristics in each of the countries which take part in the EuroDRG project. The book is addressed to health policy-makers and researchers from Europe and beyond and is intended to contribute to the emergence of a 'common language' that will facilitate communication between researchers and policy-makers from different countries. Both the overview of the key issues and the experience from the 12 countries analysed herein should be particularly useful for countries and regions that want to introduce, extend, or optimize their DRG systems. About the authors Series Editors Josep Figueras is Head of the Secretariat and Research Director of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and Head of the European Centre for Health Policy, World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe. Martin McKee is Research Director of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and Professor of European Public Health at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine as well as a co-director of the School's European Centre on Health of Societies in Transition. Book Editors Reinhard Busse is a professor and head of the Department of Healthcare Management at Berlin Technical University. Alexander Geissler is a research fellow at the Department of Health Care Management at Berlin Technical University. Wilm Quentin is a research fellow at the Department of Health Care Management at Berlin Technical University. Miriam M. Wiley is a professor and head of the Health Research and Information Division at the Economic Social Research Institute and joint programme coordinator for Health Research.