Determinants of Health Care Expenditures in Finnish Hospital Districts 1993-2005

Juho Aaltonen

No 429, Discussion Papers from VATT Institute for Economic Research

Abstract: This study assesses which factors explain the development of health care expenditures in Finnish hospital districts during 1993–2005. According to the results, real health care expenditures in hospital districts during the study period increased by 25%, but four fifths of this increase could be explained by the economic situation of the municipalities, demographic factors, the morbidity of the population and registered alcohol consumption. The increase in taxable income in municipalities and the number of diagnosed diabetes patients had a clear positive effect on health care expenditures. With favourable development of local economy municipalities increased health care resources, but this has not led to a respective growth in the service output. The relative size of the Swedishspeaking population and expenditures were also positively associated. In addition, the increase in alcohol consumption had a significant effect on expenditures. Respectively, the decrease in the proportion of disability pensioners had a modest restraining effect on expenditures.

Keywords: Health care expenditures; hospital districts; Local public economics; Kunnallistalous; Public services; Julkiset palvelut; Effectiveness of public services; Julkisten palvelujen vaikuttavuus (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2007
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea
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