Written answers
Tuesday, 27 January 2015
Department of Health
Health Services Expenditure
Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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388. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide the overall health spend here per capita and also as a percentage of GDP and of GNI in tabular form over the past five years and also with estimates of private expenditure on health, including but not limited to private health insurance and out of pocket expenses; the comparison that his Department has made with other European countries or similarly developed countries; Ireland's health spend compared to similar countries; if Ireland has above or below average health spend according to various analyses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3718/15]
Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The latest data available for health expenditure in OECD countries is for 2012 and is given in the table below. In 2012, Ireland’s total health expenditure on health was 8.9% of GDP and 10.9% of GNI. This compares with the OECD averages of 9.3% and 9.8% respectively. Comparable data for Ireland for the years 2008-2012 are also provided.
Health Expenditure per capita and as a % of GDP and GNI by financing agent, Ireland 2008-2012
| Financing Agent | per capita, Euro | % gross domestic product | % gross national income |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | |||
| General government | 2,721 | 6.8 | 7.8 |
| Private sector | 889 | 2.2 | 2.6 |
| Total expenditure | 3,610 | 9.0 | 10.4 |
| 2009 | |||
| General government | 2,584 | 7.2 | 8.7 |
| Private sector | 976 | 2.7 | 3.3 |
| Total expenditure | 3,560 | 9.9 | 11.9 |
| 2010 | |||
| General government | 2,223 | 6.4 | 7.6 |
| Private sector | 969 | 2.8 | 3.3 |
| Total expenditure | 3,192 | 9.2 | 11.0 |
| 2011 | |||
| General government | 2,100 | 5.9 | 7.3 |
| Private sector | 995 | 2.8 | 3.5 |
| Total expenditure | 3,096 | 8.7 | 10.7 |
| 2012 | |||
| General government | 2,143 | 6.0 | 7.3 |
| Private sector | 1,029 | 2.9 | 3.5 |
| Total expenditure | 3,172 | 8.9 | 10.9 |
Sources: OECD and Eurostat.
When expressed in US$ purchasing power parities, Ireland's total health expenditure in 2012 of US$ppp 3,890 per capita was above the OECD average of US$ppp 3,493 per capita. Comparable expenditure data using Euro per capita for Ireland for the years 2008-2012 is also provided.
Total health expenditure per capita (US$PPPs) and as % of GDP and GNI for selected OECD countries, 2012
| Country | Per Capita | Per Capita | Per Capita | % GDP | % GDP | % GDP | % GNI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | Public | Private | Total | Public | Private | Total | Total |
| Australia* | 2,733 | 1,264 | 3,997 | 6.2 | 2.9 | 9.1 | n/a |
| Austria | 3,716 | 1,180 | 4,896 | 8.4 | 2.7 | 11.1 | 11.2 |
| Belgium | 3,323 | 1,096 | 4,419 | 8.2 | 2.7 | 10.9 | 10.9 |
| Canada (e) | 3,224 | 1,378 | 4,602 | 7.7 | 3.3 | 10.9 | n/a |
| Chile | 776 | 801 | 1,577 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 7.3 | n/a |
| Czech Republic | 1,745 | 332 | 2,077 | 6.3 | 1.2 | 7.5 | 8.2 |
| Denmark | 4,029 | 669 | 4,698 | 9.4 | 1.6 | 11.0 | 10.7 |
| Estonia | 1,139 | 286 | 1,447 | 4.6 | 1.2 | 5.9 | 6.2 |
| Finland (e) | 2,669 | 889 | 3,559 | 6.8 | 2.3 | 9.1 | 9.0 |
| France | 3,317 | 971 | 4,288 | 9.0 | 2.6 | 11.6 | 11.4 |
| Germany | 3,691 | 1,120 | 4,811 | 8.6 | 2.6 | 11.3 | 11.0 |
| Greece | 1,617 | 759 | 2,409 | 6.2 | 2.9 | 9.3 | 9.2 |
| Hungary | 1,128 | 675 | 1,803 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 8.0 | 8.4 |
| Iceland (e) | 2,847 | 689 | 3,536 | 7.3 | 1.8 | 9.0 | 10.1 |
| Ireland | 2,628 | 1,261 | 3,890 | 6.0 | 2.9 | 8.9 | 10.9 |
| Israel | 1,377 | 890 | 2,304 | 4.4 | 2.8 | 7.3 | n/a |
| Italy | 2,481 | 728 | 3,209 | 7.1 | 2.1 | 9.2 | 9.2 |
| Japan (e) | 2,997 | 652 | 3,649 | 8.4 | 1.8 | 10.3 | n/a |
| Korea | 1,248 | 1,043 | 2,291 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 7.6 | n/a |
| Luxembourg | 3,846 | 762 | 4,578 | 6.0 | 1.2 | 7.1 | 10.5 |
| Mexico | 531 | 517 | 1,048 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 6.2 | n/a |
| Netherlands* | n/a | n/a | 5,219 | n/a | n/a | 12.1 | 12.1 |
| New Zealand* (d) | 2,623 | 549 | 3,172 | 8.3 | 1.7 | 10.0 | n/a |
| Norway | 5,222 | 918 | 6,140 | 7.9 | 1.4 | 9.3 | 9.1 |
| Poland | 1,065 | 467 | 1,540 | 4.7 | 2.0 | 6.8 | 7.1 |
| Portugal* | 1,718 | 924 | 2,642 | 6.7 | 3.6 | 10.2 | 10.6 |
| Slovak Republic | 1,468 | 637 | 2,105 | 5.7 | 2.5 | 8.1 | n/a |
| Slovenia (e) | 1,907 | 761 | 2,667 | 6.7 | 2.7 | 9.4 | 9.5 |
| Spain* | 2,190 | 808 | 2,998 | 6.9 | 2.5 | 9.4 | 9.6 |
| Sweden | 3,336 | 770 | 4,106 | 7.8 | 1.8 | 9.6 | 9.3 |
| Switzerland (e) | 4,001 | 2,078 | 6,080 | 7.5 | 3.9 | 11.4 | 11.1 |
| Turkey | 756 | 228 | 984 | 4.1 | 1.3 | 5.4 | n/a |
| United Kingdom | 2,762 | 527 | 3,289 | 7.8 | 1.5 | 9.3 | 9.3 |
| United States | 4,160 | 4,585 | 8,745 | 8.0 | 8.9 | 16.9 | n/a |
Sources: OECD, Eurostat.
Notes:
(i) Per Capita Expenditure is expressed in Purchasing Power Parities (US$PPPs).
(ii) GDP: Gross Domestic Product.
(iii) GNI: Gross National Income.
(iv) n/a: indicates 'Not available'.
(v) * indicates data for 2011.
(vi) e indicates estimated.
(vii) d indicates difference in methodology.
(viii) As PPPs are statistical constructs rather than precise measures, minor differences between countries should be interpreted with caution.
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