Income-related differences in private doctor visits in Finland, 2005 and 2011

Abstract

Background According to OECD comparisons, Finland is among the most unequal countries in terms of doctor visits. One reason behind this is that while universal public services are not always easily accessible, private services, partly reimbursed from the social insurance system (22% of costs in 2012), can be used by those who can trade off high co-payments for rapid access to care. However, not much is known on use of private care by socioeconomic groups. The aim of this study is to find out how private …