Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in Europe. Despite its size, the healthcare system is the second most expensive in the whole world only after the United States. The country also has the record for the highest per capita spending in the entire European region. Research has shown that the country utilizes up to 6.9% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on healthcare. Although Luxembourg has one of the best healthcare systems in the world, it utilizes a large portion of its annual budget on health, a factor that can significantly affect sustainability in the future. Despite the hefty expenditure, Luxembourg continues to lag in certain critical areas, including shortages in specialty care and the lack of capacity to train medical personnel. The high expenditure by Luxembourg’s healthcare system is not only a threat to sustainability but also unreflective and unresponsive of dire needs such as the capacity to train medical personnel.
It is without a doubt that Luxembourg is one of the best caregivers in Europe. This should be expected because it uses the highest amount per person on healthcare. Spranger et al., (2018) in confirming this, says, "The indicators of life expectancy and infant mortality are among the best in Europe.” A research conducted in 2016 further illustrated that the country has had an improvement in life expectancy. In 1970, life expectancy was at 69 years. In 2016, it had risen to 82.4 years. In 2017 alone, the country spends almost $6,475 per capita on healthcare. The major contribution of healthcare in the country originates from the government, which accounts for almost 80% (Shukla, 2019). Although the spending continues to increase, this has major implications on sustainability. In general, the country has an expensive healthcare system. The per capita spending has seen a tremendous increase in the recent past. A research in 2015 showed that the per capita expense was almost 82% higher than the average of all the European Union countries (Shukla, 2019).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
High healthcare prices have a significant burden on the government. Although the country has shown its ability to perform economically well, it will face prospective problems due to the ever0-increasing healthcare costs. The healthcare demands will continue to strain the government resources, which might, in the end, lead to deteriorated quality of healthcare. Although the cost of healthcare is an issue per se, the most important point of consideration stems from the fact that it has failed to solve some of the most significant problems that the country needs to solve. Despite the high amount of money that the government pumps on healthcare, training medical professionals, especially the specialty areas, have remained a significant challenge. For instance, the country has a fewer number of physicians compared to the nurses. A research conducted in 2011 showed that the country had only 2.8 practicing physicians per 1000 inhabitants (Spranger et al., 2018).
One of the most immediate impacts of the shortage in physicians and specialists is the high number of people seeking care abroad. Spranger et al. (2018) say, "As some specialized care is not readily available within Luxembourg, a generous policy on seeking treatment abroad is in place." Considering the amount the country spends on healthcare, it is almost inappropriate for it to have a large section of its population seeking care abroad. This can be interpreted as a failure on the part of the healthcare system and the nation at large. Despite the expensive healthcare, the country has failed to guarantee its citizens the availability of complex treatments and other diagnostic procedures. A research conducted in 2012 showed that the country spent another €363 million on healthcare provided abroad. Out of the many European countries, Germany is the leading destination for individuals for Luxembourg citizens looking for complex health services. Belgium is the second leading destination apart from Germany. Despite the continued referral to other countries, little has been done in terms of ensuring that the country has enough specialists to cater to the needs of the people.
In explaining the issue of shortage, Spranger et al., (2018) say, “The comparatively low number of physicians may be explained by the fact that several health professionals, such as medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy, cannot be trained in Luxembourg." The government has also failed to invest more in the tertiary education meant for medical professionals. As a result, this has led to an increased dependence on the foreign trade healthcare professionals there jeopardizing sustainable healthcare planning. Instead of concentrating on the specialty areas, Luxembourg has rather focused on nurses, midwives, and other areas such as social assistance. Case studies from other countries in the EU have shown that high costs do not necessarily allude to good performance. The article “State of Health in the EU: Luxembourg” in supporting these assertions writes, “In comparison, relative to levels of health spending, a number of countries such as Spain and France achieve similar or even lower amenable mortality rates at much lower costs per capita.”
Therefore, this is a lesson that spending too much on healthcare does not necessarily mean quality. Another example of a country that struggles with its healthcare system despite spending heavily is the United States. The continued high expenditure on healthcare threatens the sustainability of the country, especially as regards solving other equally important aspects of the economy. The problem with the high healthcare costs is the fact that it will continue to grow faster in relation to the national income. Another problem identified by Schieber et al. (2019) states that “spending on health care is rising more rapidly than earnings for workers and their families.” Despite the healthcare basing its system on reimbursements, a small percentage of people rely on the out-of-pocket payment. With such an expensive system, lacking health insurance means that the healthcare system is almost inaccessible to the common citizen. In addressing this issue, the country must embark on serious cost-effectiveness measures. Also, the focus must be placed on significant areas such as training specialists and increasing the number of physicians.
In conclusion, the high expenditure by Luxembourg's healthcare system is not only a threat to sustainability but also unreflective and unresponsive of dire needs such as the capacity to train medical personnel. It is crucial to appreciate the significant steps that Luxembourg's healthcare system has achieved in the recent past. The increased life expectancy and improvement in the primary healthcare headline some of the steps that the government has realized. However, healthcare expenditure remains high and expensive for the country to manage in the coming years. As such, this has significant implications for sustainability. Although the government has the money and resources, research has shown that Luxembourg continues to trail in several fundamental areas such as training of medical specialists. In turn, every year, the country spends additional funds to facilitate the treatment of people in other countries, including Germany and Belgium. Necessary reforms need to be taken to enhance cost-effectiveness and overall efficiency that matches the amount of money that the government spends on the healthcare industry.
References
Schieber, S. J., Bilyeu, D. K., Hardy, D. R., Katz, M. R., Kennelly, B. B., & Warshawsky, M. J. (2009). The unsustainable cost of health care. The unsustainable costs of health care.
Shukla, V. (2019). Top 10 Countries with the Highest Healthcare Spending Per Capita. https://www.valuewalk.com/2019/04/top-10-countries-highest-healthcare-spending/
Spranger, A., Calteux, A., & van Ginneken, (2018). F. B. E. KEY REFORMS AND CHALLENGES LUXEMBOURG. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ewout_Van_Ginneken/publication/281748095_Key_reforms_and_challenges_for_the_Luxembourg_health_system/links/55f728bd08ae07629dc0e606/Key-reforms-and-challenges-for-the-Luxembourg-health-system.pdf
State of Health in the EU Luxembourg Country Health Profile 2017 http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/355988/Health-Profile-Luxembourg-Eng.pdf?ua=1
