The Chair of the Taub Center Health Policy Program, Prof. Nadav Davidovitch, in a meeting with senior members of the Ministry of Health. In the meeting of some 15 participants, including the Deputy Director of Planning and Strategy, Prof. Davidovitch presented the latest study conducted on the increased use of prescription pain medication (opioids). Additional subjects in the meeting were the updating of the health basket and excess deaths from environmental factors. Prof. Davidovitch noted: “Israel is ranked 26 out of 38 countries in terms of public expenditure on health per capita, and the cumulative gap with the erosion of the health basket reaches NIS 33 billion.”