Norway spent almost NOK 72,000 on health expenditure per capita last year. That is NOK 1,700 more than in 2019, new figures from Statistics Norway (SSB) show.
The SSB health review figures show that the total health expenditure in Norway last year amounted to NOK 387 billion.
Health expenditure amounted to just under NOK 72,000 per inhabitant in 2020, which is NOK 1,700 more than the year before. In the last ten years, the average growth was NOK 2,500 a year.
Wage costs are the highest cost in the health sector – and lower wage growth dragged down expenditure growth last year.
The health accounts show that the corona pandemic has not increased the number of patients at Norwegian hospitals. The lockdown of society actually reduced the number of patients, especially in March and April, when many appointments were postponed.
In March and April, hospital activity was reduced, and services such as dentists and physiotherapy providers almost stopped for a period of time. Other service providers such as GPs and psychologists quickly switched to digital platforms.
Although the hospitals had lower activity in the spring, the costs were not reduced as much because no employees were laid off.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews
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