Increased Kela compensation for private doctors' visits has cost the state tens of millions of euros without a significant increase in the number of visits to see private doctors.
Yle obtained figures from Kela that show a tiny increase in visits to private doctors, despite hugely increased funding.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's (NCP) government had boosted public funding for private doctor appointments from eight euros to 30, saying that the move would help cut waiting times in the public sector.
In reality, the number of appointments increased by just 0.7 percent in the first seven months of the year. The public money spent on these visits more than doubled, from 19.3 million euros to 51.6 million euros.
First results: Reform looks to have failed
Mika Kortelainen, a professor of health sciences, told Yle that if this was to succeed in shortening waiting lists for treatment, patients would have to switch from the public to the private sector and use private doctors.
"It would mean that visits would increase significantly," said Kortelainen. "The first results are a bit depressing, that the changes are so small."
Professor Petri Böckerman of Jyväskylä University concurs.
"Expanding Kela compensation in this way, as it has been implemented, does not look to be a successful policy, in the light of these numbers — quite the opposite," said Böckerman.
The professors state that the group of potential users of private doctors is limited, despite the increased funding directed at them.
"The cost to patients remains significant even after the Kela compensation, especially to lower-income people, who generally don't have earlier experience of using private healthcare services," said Böckerman.
Yle's figures suggest that those making use of the Kela compensation are concentrated in wealthier districts, such as Espoo's Westend neighbourhood.
Kortelainen says that earlier experiences suggest that it is unrealistic to expect that a few euros' increase in public funding for private doctor visits would transfer larger numbers of people from public to private healthcare.
He refers back to experiences in the last decade, when changes in Kela compensation amounts have not correlated with changes in usage of private doctors.
"Although compensation has reduced a lot over several years, there have not been big changes in usage [of private doctors]," said Kortelainen.
The government plans to raise the funding even further, from the current 30 euros to 50 euros per visit. That change is slated to come into force from the start of the year.
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