The health insurance expensesreached 146 billion euros in 2011. The first big budget concerns the hospitalizations punctual. In 2011, they represented 29.9 billion euros in reimbursements, or more than 20% of total expenditure, specifies the Health Insurance report.
Endoscopies, cataract, hand and wrist, mouth and dental operations account for the majority of these short stays.
“7.3 million patients experienced an occasional episode of hospitalization in 2011, a number up 2.2% compared to the previous year”, underlines the Health Insurance.
Mental health treatment, second heaviest item
Mental health ranks second in the order of health insurance expenditure with 22.6 billion euros. This item of expenditure covers psychiatric pathologies resulting in hospitalizations (14.1 billion) and disorders leading to regular consumption of psychotropic drugs (8.5 billion).
Cardiovascular diseases: 10% of expenses
The third source of expenditure comes from diabetes and other cardiovascular risks (arterial hypertension and hyperlipidemia) with 15.7 billion euros. They are followed by cardiovascular pathologies which in 2011 cost no less than 14.7 billion euros. “Two pathologies make up more than half of these expenses: acute (myocardial infarction) or chronic coronary disease andstroke“, underlines the document.
All pathologies and cardiovascular risks constitute an important item of expenditure since they total more than a fifth of the amounts reimbursed by Social Security. 11.5 million policyholders are treated for a cardiovascular disease or risk.
Cancer treatment represents an annual expenditure of 14.5 billion euros, or 10% of overall health insurance expenditure, as does cardiovascular pathologies. Breast and colon cancers take the lion’s share with 19% and 10% of expenditures for this item.
Towards better management of the health system
This Health Insurance analysis will be used to “develop prevention objectives, (…) for pathologies for which levers of action exist (pathologies and cardiovascular risk factors, diabetes, asthma, cancers, etc.)” but also to “improve the quality of care and the health of the population”.
