The University of Alicante's Aula de Ciencia y Tecnología will feature a lecture by Beatriz González López-Valcárcel, a prominent professor from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and a pioneer in health economics in Spain. The event is part of the "Economy and Society" cycle and will take place on 21 October 2026 at 19:15 at the Sede Universitaria Ciudad de Alicante.
During her session titled “Health and Economy,” González López-Valcárcel will provide a strategic perspective on the future of healthcare and its economic implications. She will discuss how healthcare spending is increasingly consuming a larger portion of regional budgets and Spain's GDP, while various indicators suggest a diminishing marginal productivity of healthcare in terms of population health.
The expert will also address the growing dysfunctions between public and private sectors regarding financing, provision, and management, set against a backdrop of strong ideological polarization. She argues that the sustainability of the welfare state necessitates consensual reforms to ensure the economic viability of the healthcare system without undermining equity, a fundamental principle of the Spanish healthcare system.
The session will be moderated by Ana Laguna, a retired professor from the University of Alicante with a distinguished career, including roles as vice-rector and dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences.
The Aula de Ciencia y Tecnología is supported by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, through UA Divulga, the Scientific Culture and Innovation Unit of the University of Alicante.
About Beatriz González López-Valcárcel
Beatriz González López-Valcárcel is an emeritus professor at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. She holds a degree in Economics from the University of Santiago de Compostela and a doctorate from the University of La Laguna. She served as president of the Spanish Association of Health Economics from 2004 to 2005 and led the Health Economics Section of the European Public Health Association (EUPHA) from 2011 to 2012.
Her extensive experience includes being a member of the Advisory Council on Health for the Ministry of Economy in Spain and representing the Canary Islands on the Advisory Committee of the National Health System. She was also president of the Spanish Society of Public Health and Health Administration from 2015 to 2017. In recognition of her contributions, she received the Civil Order of Health Cross in 2011 and was named an adopted daughter of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in 2009, as well as of Gran Canaria in 2016. In 2017, she was listed among the 100 leading women in Spain by the Mujeres y Cia portal and was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Isalud University in Buenos Aires in 2015.
