The HEPARD (Health Economic Policy Advice with Real World Data) Doctoral Network addresses persistent health inequalities across Europe through a multidisciplinary approach uniting health economics, public health, and advanced data analytics. Despite positive trends in general health and life expectancy, disparities—particularly among socioeconomic groups and regions—continue to challenge policy efforts. HEPARD aims to train researchers in causal inference methods, using observational data to evaluate the real-world impacts of health policies and interventions. HEPARD focuses on key drivers of health disparities. Through interdisciplinary research clusters, it investigates the effects of lifestyle interventions, family-centered policies, and health insurance systems on health equity. Traditional studies often overlook socioeconomic and contextual factors shaping policy outcomes. HEPARD instead uses quasi-experimental and machine learning methods to analyze real-world data, yielding insights more relevant to Europe’s diverse conditions. The network’s research program includes four main work packages (WPs): - Real Data Innovation Analytics: Applies machine learning and causal inference to assess lifestyle health interventions in reducing chronic disease. - Family Futures: Studies health policies’ impacts on parents and children, focusing on policies like postpartum support and childcare across diverse European context. - Incentives and Impacts: Examines how various health insurance systems affect equity and access across Europe. - Methodological Cross-Breeding for Enhanced Causal Inference: Develops new causal inference tools by integrating economic and epidemiological approaches. Together, these WPs create a unified framework for understanding and addressing health inequities, combining methodological innovation with policy relevance to equip early-stage researchers with the tools to design impactful, evidence-based solutions that enhance well-being across Europe.