Indicator 3.42 Standardised preventable and treatable mortality

Avoidable mortality covers both preventable and treatable causes of mortality. Preventable mortality refers to mortality that can mainly be avoided through effective public health and primary prevention interventions (carried out before the onset of diseases/injuries to reduce incidence). Treatable mortality can mainly be avoided through timely and effective health care interventions, including secondary prevention and treatment (after the onset of diseas.

Indicator is used to monitor progress towards SDG 3 on good health and well-being, which are embedded in the European Commission’s 2024-2029 Priorities under ‘Supporting people, strenghtening our societes and our social model’. Main prerequisite for meeting these objectives are universal health coverage; access to sexual and reproductive health-care services and to safe, affordable and effective medicines and vaccines for all. Standardised death rates that are used for this indicator take into account that countries with larger shares of older inhabitants also have higher death rates.

The total avoidable mortality rate includes a number of infectious diseases, several types of cancers, endocrine and metabolic diseases, as well as some diseases of the nervous, circulatory, respiratory, digestive and genitourinary systems, some diseases related to pregnancy, childbirth and the perinatal period, a number of congenital malformations, adverse effects of medical and surgical care, a list of injuries and alcohol and drug-related disorders. Treatable mortality can mainly be avoided through timely and effective health care interventions, including secondary prevention and treatment (after the onset of diseases to reduce case-fatality). The data are presented as standardised death rates, meaning they are adjusted to a standard age distribution in order to measure death rates independently of different age structures of populationses to reduce case-fatality).

The long-term objective for this indicator is a value of 150.