20:24 25 November 2021
Poland has a disastrous result in the ranking of health-related expenditure
Eurostat presented data on expenditure on social protection and health care in 2020 in EU countries. Only in Poland, expenses for these purposes decreased compared to 2019 – they amounted to 4.8 percent. This is the worst result in the EU.
In turn, the largest increase in expenditure in relation to GDP took place in 2020 in Cyprus (+2.2 pp), Belgium (+1.3 pp), and our neighbors – in the Czech Republic (+1.2 pp). The only country that recorded a decline was Poland (-0.3 pp).
The data presented by Eurostat concern expenditure in relation to GDP. The European Statistical Office compares 2019 and the pandemic 2020, including it, contributed to the weak position of our country. While spending on social protection and healthcare across the EU was higher, the pandemic had a negative impact on GDP.
"Expenditure on healthcare and sickness as a percentage of GDP has increased in all EU Member States except Poland. However, this is partly due to the fact that nominal GDP has decreased as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, spending on social protection benefits has increased overall in all Member States," the Eurostat explained.
