Richard Gauss

A native of Linz, the economist Richard Gauss is responsible at the Federal Ministry of Finance for budgetary issues relating to labor, health, social services and pensions. He sees big challenges ahead for the Austrian health care system and major needs for reform. Contributors to the system as well as individual patients are becoming increasingly critical about the efficiency of the existing structures, institutions and instruments. The need to consider a paradigm change is becoming ever more urgent. This will require a new way of thinking, a shift away from a policy focusing on illness and how to combat it to a policy centering on health and how to maintain it. He sees the FGÖ as an important trail-blazer and pacesetter in this context. Gauss describes his work on the FGÖ Board as follows:

"I enjoy contributing here because the FGÖ approaches its clients with a health-oriented world view and because it is drawing on modern methods and new types of instruments to invest in the health of all Austrians and in the future of our country."