On 25 November 2022, the Council adopted a recommendation on affordable high-quality long-term care.

The long-term care recommendation proposes actions to make care more accessible, affordable and of better quality.

• It recommends closing the territorial gaps in availability of and access to long-term care, in particular in rural and depopulating areas, ensuring compliance with quality criteria and standards across all long-term care settings and promoting autonomy and independent living.
• It also recommends that Member States support quality employment and fair working conditions for carers, including attractive wages.
• Furthermore, Member States, in collaboration, where relevant, with social partners, long-term care providers and other stakeholders, should improve the professionalisation of care and address skills needs and worker shortages in long-term care. For example, Member States should design and improve the initial and continuous education and training to equip current and future long-term care workers with the necessary skills and competences, including digital ones, and establish pathways to a regular employment status for undeclared long-term care workers.

The European Commission's Green Paper on Ageing (2021) underlines the challenges and opportunities of demographic ageing, taking a life-cycle perspective and framing intergenerational solidarity as the foundation for further action.

It draws into focus the importance of healthy and active ageing, access to education and training in a lifelong learning perspective, the need for adequate, fair, and sustainable pension systems, and the growing needs of an ageing population with respect to health and long-term care, mobility, connectivity, and accessibility.

Its findings continue to contribute to the implementation of the European Care Strategy and fed into the preparation of the 2025 Ageing Report. 

The EU's Digital Strategy (2020) seeks to ensure that technology improves daily life by putting people first and supporting innovation grounded in European values.

A key milestone under this strategy is the creation of the European Health Data Space (EHDS) — a flagship digital health initiative politically agreed in March 2024 and entering into force in 2025. 

The EHDS establishes a secure EU-wide framework for health data use and sharing, enabling citizens to access and control their personal health records across Member States and allowing anonymised data to be used for research, innovation, policy development and public health monitoring. 

This new digital infrastructure is expected to enhance continuity of care and the integration of health and long-term care services, improve workforce efficiency, and support data-driven policymaking on ageing, prevention and care delivery across Europe. 

The EU Rural pact (2022) supports cooperation among public authorities, civil society and local stakeholders to deliver the Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas (2040).

It emphasises access to health and social services, digital connectivity, education and employment in rural territories, recognising care provision as a major rural employer.

In 2025, the Pact’s first biennial report highlighted progress on integrated rural-care models and the use of EU funds (ESF+, RRF, CAP social conditionality) to improve access to community-based services.  

Launched in 2021, the Social Economy Action Plan improves the enabling environment for social-economy organisations. It underlines the complementarity with the European Care Strategy, showing how cooperatives, mutuals and social enterprises contribute to the care economy, promote decent work and local jobs, and expand access to affordable services. 

In 2024, the Commission adopted a Council Recommendation on developing framework conditions for the social economy, reinforcing its role in care provision and workforce innovation. 

The aim of the Directive on adequate minimum wages, which was adopted in 2022, is to establish new EU rules that promote adequate statutory minimum wages in Europe and help to improve working and living conditions for employees in Europe. This would equally apply to those within the care economy, who often face precarious conditions and/or limited financial support.

By 2025, most have enacted national implementing measures, with the Commission beginning its first compliance review as part of the European Semester.