gdr ; high spending on health + welfare

- though personal incomes + overall standards of living in GDR comp. 2 FRG unfavourably, in many ways pop. had gr8r level security due 2 high gov. spending on health / social welfare

- exp. on subsidised housing / education / health / welf. rose from DM7.2Bn in '80 to DM112.3Bn in '85

- health imp. issue

- healthy workforce inc. productivity + leading health care sys. gained GDR not just humanitarian sense of wellbeing but international prestige 2

- some analysts sugg. that strong welf. sys. had clear social + political conseq. in maintaining certain pub. satisfaction w/in st8 + there4 prevented opposition w/in GDR from reach. sig. levels of mass protest…