Poland is spending more and more on healthcare, but the sums are still proving insufficient to approach European levels, according to an analysis of the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors of Central and Eastern European countries in the Emerging Europe Pharma & Healthcare Sector 2023/2024 report.

According to the World Bank, Poland will spend 6.59 % of its GDP on healthcare in 2021. This represents an increase from 6.4 % in 2020. Although the Polish government has declared that it wishes to increase spending on public healthcare to 7 % of GDP by 2027, this may not have the desired effect, as 7 % of GDP is still less than the European Union average of 8.1 % in 2021.

Analysts at EMIS (ISI Emerging Markets Group) point out that Central and Eastern European countries are characterised by relatively low healthcare spending. The ratio of healthcare expenditure to GDP is below the European Union average (at 8.1 %). Turkey and Romania fluctuate around the 5 % level, while Hungary and the Czech Republic – the regional leaders – spent more than 6 % of their GDP on healthcare in 2021.

Poland has one of the lowest numbers of medical staff available per 1 000 inhabitants in Central and Eastern Europe. In 2019, it was 2.4 doctors and 5.1 nurses. This compares with 4.1 doctors and 8.6 nurses in the Czech Republic and 4.2 and 8.5 respectively in Russia. At the same time, the average price of medicines in Poland is 1.5 times higher than the average price in the EU.

The health profiles of the CEE countries reflect rather low health care spending, as well as the persistently inadequate level of funding for national health care systems. Chronic diseases, e.g. heart disease, cancer and diabetes, are becoming increasingly common in the region. In addition, there is a lack of awareness among the public about risk factors and the importance of early detection and prevention, conclude the EMIS experts.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński