Poland narrows health investment gap with West, but structural barriers persist

CEE countries are spending just half the Western European per capita rate on health, with measurable consequences for productivity and public finances. New analysis reveals that Poland and its Central and Eastern European neighbours now face a widening healthcare financing crisis that risks undermining decades of economic convergence.

The scale of the gap is stark. Poland spends just 4.99 per cent of GDP on healthcare, against an average of 8.17 per cent across the EU’s four largest economies – Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Per capita health investment across the CEE region runs at roughly half the Western European rate, a disparity that carries direct consequences for workforce productivity and long-term fiscal sustainability.

“Central and Eastern Europe is catching up in health investment, but the gap with Western Europe remains significant,” said Michał Byliniak, director general of INFARMA, the Polish association of innovative pharmaceutical companies. “Per…