HORIZON-HLTH-2026-01-CARE-03: Identifying and addressing low-value care in health and systems

Tagline:
“Reducing low-value care by connecting health and social ecosystems through innovation.”

We are building a European consortium to identify, measure, and reduce low-value healthcare linked to unmet social needs, focusing on unwanted loneliness in older adults. This challenge drives unnecessary hospital visits, inappropriate resource use, and poor health outcomes.

Our project will:

• Develop evidence-based indicators and AI-assisted risk stratification to detect patterns of low-value care.

• Create an early detection tool for vulnerability associated with loneliness.

• Design and pilot digital solutions for mapping social and healthcare services and improving care navigation.

• Implement education programs for citizens, patients, and professionals to optimize resource use.

• Evaluate impact through Social Return on Investment (SROI) and transferability across diverse EU health systems.

We are looking for:

• Hospitals and healthcare providers for pilot sites.

• Social care organizations to integrate community resources.

• Technology partners for digital tool development.

• Academic and SSH experts for ethics, impact, and evaluation.

• Policymakers and patient organizations to ensure adoption and scalability.

Join us to co-create innovative strategies that improve efficiency, quality of care, and patient well-being across Europe.

Keywords:
Horizon Europe • Health Innovation • Social Care • AI • Digital Health • Loneliness • Low-Value Care • Elderly Care • Cross-Border Collaboration • Impact Assessment • SROI • Community Engagement