Current health expenditure (CHE) per capita in US$, 2022: $6,456.08
Source: Global Health Observatory. Current health expenditure (CHE) per capita in US$. Geneva: World Health Organization. Last accessed Jan. 23, 2025.
Out-of-pocket expenditure (OOP) per capita in US$, 2022: $841.10
Source: Global Health Observatory. Out-of-pocket expenditure (OOP) per capita in US$. Geneva: World Health Organization. Last accessed Jan. 23, 2025.
Out-of-pocket expenditure as percentage of current health expenditure (CHE) (%), 2022: 13.03%
Source: Global Health Observatory. Out-of-pocket expenditure as percentage of current health expenditure (CHE) (%). Geneva: World Health Organization. Last accessed Jan. 23, 2025.
Domestic private health expenditure (PVT-D) as percentage of current health expenditure (CHE) (%), 2022: 16.05%
Source: Global Health Observatory. Domestic private health expenditure (PVT-D) as percentage of current health expenditure (CHE) (%). Geneva: World Health Organization. Last accessed Jan. 23, 2025.
Domestic private health expenditure (PVT-D) per capita in US$, 2022: $1,035.93
Source: Global Health Observatory. Domestic private health expenditure (PVT-D) per capita in US$. Geneva: World Health Organization. Last accessed Jan. 23, 2025.
Health expenditure per capita, USD PPP, 2022
– Government/compulsory: $5,324
– Voluntary/Out-of-pocket: $956
– Total: $6,280
Health expenditure by type of financing, 2021
– Government schemes: 85%
– Compulsory health insurance: 0%
– Voluntary health insurance: 2%
– Out-of-pocket: 13%
– Other: 0%
Out-of-pocket spending on health as share of final household consumption, 2021: 3.0%
Price levels in the healthcare sector, 2021 (OECD average = 100): 105
Population reporting unmet needs for medical care, by income level, 2021
– Lowest quintile: 2%
– Highest quintile: 0.8%
– Total: 1.2%
Main reason for reporting unmet needs for medical care, 2021
– Waiting list: 0.8%
– Too expensive: 0.3%
– Too far to travel: 0.1%
Expenditure on retail pharmaceuticals per capita, USD PPP, 2021
– Prescription medicines: $240
– Over-the-counter medicines: $59
– Total: $299
Expenditure on retail pharmaceuticals by type of financing, 2021:
– Government/compulsory schemes: 52%
– Voluntary health insurance schemes: 0%
– Out-of-pocket spending: 48%
– Other: 0%
Source: OECD (2023), Health at a Glance 2023: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, doi.org/10.1787/7a7afb35-en.
Annual household out-of-pocket payment in current US$ per capita (2019): $851
Source: Global Health Expenditure Database. Health expenditure series. Geneva: World Health Organization. Last accessed Nov. 13, 2022.
Out-of-Pocket Spending as Share of Final Household Consumption (%) (2019): 3.1%
Source: OECD (2021), Health at a Glance 2021: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/ae3016b9-en.
“In the years before the pandemic, health spending as a share of GDP in Denmark had remained relatively stable at around 10.2% of GDP, but this share increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly due to increases in health spending. In 2021, health spending in Denmark accounted for 10.8% of GDP, which nonetheless remained slightly below the EU average of 11.0%.
“However, as shown in Figure 9, health spending per person in Denmark in 2021 was higher than the EU average, at EUR 4,325 per capita (adjusted for differences in purchasing power) compared to EUR 4,029. Most health spending (85% in 2021) was funded by government through general taxation. This proportion of public funding has been stable over the past 15 years, and is higher than the EU average (81%). Private spending accounted for the remaining 15% of health expenditure in 2021: 13% was paid out of pocket, while the remaining 2% was covered through voluntary health insurance (VHI). Complementary VHI is purchased by over 40% of the population to cover user charges for outpatient medicines, dental care and other services.”
Source: OECD/European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (2023), Denmark: Country Health Profile 2023, State of Health in the EU, OECD Publishing, Paris/European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, Brussels.
“Overall, the nationally defined benefits package for healthcare in Denmark is broad and extensive (Figure 17). There is high coverage for inpatient and outpatient care, but coverage for dental care and pharmaceuticals remains fairly low, as is the case in many other EU countries.
“Lower coverage rates for pharmaceuticals and dental care lead to a concentration of out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure in these two areas. Together, OOP spending on pharmaceuticals and dental care accounted for nearly half of total OOP spending in Denmark in 2021 (Figure 18).
“An annual maximum copayment for people was introduced in January 2016 on expenses related to reimbursable pharmaceuticals. This maximum copayment has been reduced gradually: it went down from DKK 4,270 (EUR 570) per year in 2021 to DKK 3,075 (EUR 410) in 2023.”
Source: OECD/European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (2023), Denmark: Country Health Profile 2023, State of Health in the EU, OECD Publishing, Paris/European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, Brussels.
Danish Health System Overview
Health System Rankings
Health System Outcomes
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Costs for Consumers
Health System Expenditures
Health System Financing
Preventive Healthcare
World Health Systems Facts is a project of the Real Reporting Foundation. We provide reliable statistics and other data from authoritative sources regarding health systems and policies in the US and sixteen other nations.
Page last updated April 18, 2025 by Doug McVay, Editor.