A survey conducted by IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) showed that there was a decrease in the consumption of health-related goods and services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study indicates that the sector’s share of the gross domestic product increased from 9.6% in 2019 to 10.1% in 2020, especially due to the rise in the prices of products such as medicines and health services. The research released on Friday (5) is the result of a partnership with Fiocruz, IPEA, ANS and the Ministry of Health.
According to research analyst Tasya Holguin, healthcare was a sector that was severely affected by the pandemic. “In 2020, we observed a decrease in the number of outpatient and hospital procedures, such as consultations and elective surgeries. In the opposite direction, 2021 saw an increase in the consumption of health goods and services, which can be partly attributed to the start of the Covid health vaccination campaign,” he says. -19 and increasing the consumption of medications and resuming consultations, examinations and elective surgeries.”
Regarding gross value added (the extent to which an activity contributes to GDP), the health sector decreased by 3.9% in 2020, while other activities decreased by 3.1%. In 2021, the added value of health-related activities increased by 7.4% and non-health-related activities by 4.3%.
Although consumption of health goods and services declined in 2020, the share of health spending in GDP rose from 9.6% to 10.1%. This can be explained by the high prices of medicines and health services compared to the average economy. “The pandemic has caused increased health expenditures by both the government and households,” says Tasia. The variation in the prices of medicines consumed by families reached 7.1%, while for the government the increase in prices for providing public health services amounted to 29.3%.
The survey shows that Brazil's public health spending relative to GDP is one of the lowest compared to selected Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, at 4.0%.
“Across all countries, there was an increase in government spending as a share of GDP on health in 2020, the first year of the pandemic. However, in Brazil, Mexico and Chile in this comparison, public spending decreased in 2021, compared to the previous year while it increased UK, Germany, France and Colombia Their health spending compared to GDP in 2021.
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