Health Expenditure and Financing

Preliminary information Health Expenditure and Financing 2022 has been published.

Appendix tables (xlsx 159 kb)

Health care expenditure has increased for all major health care functions

In 2019, Finland’s health care expenditure amounted to EUR 22.0 billion, with a year-on-year increase of 3.0 per cent in real terms. The per capita expenditure was EUR 3,983.

In 2019, health care expenditure corresponded to 9.2 per cent of the GDP which was 0.2 percentage points more than the year before.

Expenditures increased in particular for prescription medicines for outpatient care (+10.1%), primary health care (+4.5%) and long-term care and home care for the elder-ly and persons with disabilities (+ 4.2%).

Special health care (EUR 8.0 billion) constituted the largest single item of health care expenditure. Together with basic health care expenditure (EUR 3.4 billion, incl. outpa-tient care in primary health care, inpatient care, oral health care, occupational health care, student health care, and services purchased by municipalities and joint municipal authorities from private organisations) these two categories accounted for slightly more than half of all health care expenditure in 2019. Special health care expenditure increased by 2.5% compared to 2018.

For long-term care for the elderly and persons with disabilities, expenditure increased by 3.5% from the previous year, amounting to 2.5 billion euros. Home care expenditure, meanwhile, saw an increase of 8.4%.

In 2019, public funding accounted for 76.8 per cent and private funding for 23.2 per cent of the health expenditure. The share of public funding increased by 0.8 percentage points from 2018.

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Statistic represented graphically — Health expenditure by function in 2000–2019, in 2019 prices, € million

Tables

Description of the statistic

Each year, the National Institute for Health and Welfare compiles data on public and private health care expenditure and financing according to the concepts and classifications of the System of Health Accounts (SHA), a statistical framework maintained by the OECD. The data for the ‘Health Expenditure and Financing’ report are compiled from statistics, annual reports, financial statements and similar sources.

The data are updated in March each year.