Per capita private health expenditure in Italy 2009-2019

In 2019, the private health expenditure amounted to 692 euros per capita in Italy. This was a considerable increase compared to 2009, when people spent on average 492 euros per capita for health goods and services. Also, the total private health expenditure grew from 32.7 billion euros in 2012 to 40 billion euros in 2019.

Healthcare expenditure

In Italy, the national healthcare system (in Italian, Servizio Sanitario Nazionale - SSN) is mainly funded through national and regional taxes and is supplemented by out-of-pocket private expenditure and insurance schemes. In 2020, health expenditure in Italy accounted for 9.7 percent of the country’s GDP, a figure which remained rather stable in recent years but increased suddenly in 2020. Government funding accounted for approximately 70 percent of total healthcare expenditure.

 Private health expenditure

As mentioned above, private healthcare expenditure increased considerably in recent years. Who pays the most out-of-pocket for healthcare services? According to recent data, those who need to resort to out-of-pocket payments appear to be the elderly and individuals needing long-term care. In 2019, the direct expenditure on healthcare of individuals in these two categories was far higher than for younger individuals and for those with a good health condition.