The EUROPEAN HEALTH FORUM GASTEIN (EHFG) was founded in 1998 as a European health policy conference with the aim of providing a platform for discussion for the various stakeholders in the field of public health and health care. Since then the EHFG has developed into a key annual event, bringing together, 

politicians, senior decision-makers, representatives of interest groups, and experts coming from government and administration, business and industry, civil society and science and academia. These four groups of stakeholders with their perspectives constitute the four pillars of the EHFG.

The EHFG further considers the vertical organisation of societies and the EU by integrating regional, national, European and international levels and thus facilitating the exchange of views and experience amongst key actors and experts from the 27 EU members and the EEA countries, but also from the rest of the 52 countries of the WHO European region. Launched with major financial support from the European Commission, subsequent events have grown with the continued and extended co-operation of Commission services. In that regard the Forum can be considered as a pilot project and benchmark for any Commission civil society consultation process.