That national healthcare expenditure rose during 2020 will come as little surprise to most, but as new provisional figures from the UK's ONS reveal, that spike upwards was dramatic. The leap of 19.7 percent compared to 2019 is unprecedented at least as far back as 1997 when this statistical series began.
Confirming the situation, the ONS reports: "The increase in total current healthcare spending was primarily driven by government expenditure, reflecting the UK and devolved governments’ response to the coronavirus pandemic." When looking at the estimated £269 billion in costs as a a share of GDP, this figure equates to 12.8 percent - up from 10.2 percent in 2019.
