Europe is facing a shortage of well over 1,000,000 health professionals.

Omissions

• The most recent widely cited figure (1.2 million) is drawn from the OECD/European Commission 'Health at a Glance: Europe 2024' report and refers to data as of 2022, i.e. roughly four years before the session date of 2026-09-17; no more recent comprehensive EU-wide estimate was found.
• The figure covers doctors, nurses and midwives in the EU specifically, not all 'professionals' across the whole of geographical Europe.
• The WHO projects a much larger gap of 4.1 million health workers in the EU by 2030, which the 'well over 1 million' framing does not convey.
• The EU Perspectives article reports the same plenary debate in which the claim was made and is not independent verification of the underlying statistic.

Sources

• PrimaryEurostat – Healthcare personnel statistics (nursing and caring professionals), Statistics ExplainedThere are concerns about a shortage of nursing and caring professionals in the EU. These may become exacerbated as the population continues to age... Data extracted in July 2025.
• AcademicThe shortage of skilled workers in Europe: its impact on geriatric medicine (peer-reviewed article, PMC)Again, in the EU28, the overall shortfall of health workers was estimated to be 1.6 million in 2013 ... the expected shortage in the EU28 is anticipated to reach 4.1 million in 2030 (0.6 million physicians, 2.3 million nurses and 1.3 million other health care professionals).
• SecondaryEuropean Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) – 'Healthcare in the EU: Addressing urgent labour shortages and ensuring quality jobs' (PE 767.231)The Health at a glance: Europe 2024 report, presented to the Public Health (SANT) Committee on 29 January 2025, estimates a shortage of 1.2 million doctors, nurses and midwives in the EU as of 2022. This deficit, amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, is due to a combination of factors.
• SecondaryEU Perspectives – 'Europe is short of a million health workers. Parliament asks Brussels for money''Europe is facing a deficit of well over one million professionals. We can no longer afford to simply monitor these trends,' Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi told MEPs. ... Europe applauded its nurses and doctors through the pandemic. Six years later it is short of a million of them. Three in ten of its doctors are over 55.