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Polish president OKs plan to hike healthcare spending

30.09.2021 08:00
Poland will gradually increase healthcare spending to 7 percent of GDP by 2027, under a plan greenlighted by President Andrzej Duda.
Polish President Andrzej Duda.
Polish President Andrzej Duda.Photo: Grzegorz Jakubowski/KPRP

The Polish president signed the plan into effect on Wednesday after it was approved by both houses of parliament this summer.

Health Minister Adam Niedzielski told lawmakers last month that the planned hike would make it possible “to continue the policy of building a stable financial base for the development of medical care in Poland.”

Under the new rules approved by the Polish head of state, Poland expects to spend 5.75 percent of its GDP on healthcare next year, followed by 6 percent in 2023, 6.2 percent in 2024, 6.5 percent in 2025, 6.8 percent in 2026, and 7 percent in 2027.

Niedzielski has said the new regulations will “enable an injection of an extra PLN 85 billion (EUR 18.5 billion) into the national health system in the coming years.”

Polish Health Minister Adam Niedzielski. Polish Health Minister Adam Niedzielski. Photo: PAP/Piotr Nowak

With the new law, public spending on healthcare is set to exceed PLN 215 billion (EUR 46.9 billion) in 2027, according to the government.

The plan is part of the government’s flagship Polish New Deal initiative, which aims to boost the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic.

(gs)

Source: PAP