Danish government announces healthcare budget increase, new cancer plan

The Danish government has decided to invest heavily in healthcare, announcing a yearly budget increase of DKK 5 billion (€670 million), with an all-new cancer plan and additional investments to ‘restore confidence in Danish cancer treatment’.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Health Minister Sophie Løhde and Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen presented the government’s new healthcare package at a press conference at the Copenhagen University Hospital.

“Much is going well today, not least thanks to the skilled staff”, said Frederiksen.

“There are also major challenges. That is why we in the government have decided to make a massive investment in our health here in Denmark”, she added.

The government has indeed decided to increase the budget for the healthcare system by DKK 5 billion (€670 million) a year.

At the same time, the government announced more funding for cancer treatment after several stories about patients who did not receive the treatment they were entitled to surfaced in the public debate. In the Central Denmark Region, for example, patients with advanced bowel cancer did not receive treatment on time, DR reported.

“This is a failure, no matter how you look at it”, declared Frederiksen, soon echoed by Foreign Minister and former Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

“It is a deep irritation that we in this society have created some unique patient rights, and then some patients are put at the back of the queue because of misguided economic considerations,” he said.

To “restore confidence in Danish cancer treatment”, as the government puts it, the government intends to set aside DKK 400 million (€53.6 million) this year and the next.

“If you can’t get the help you are entitled to in Denmark, you need to be sure that finances are not the deciding factor,” the prime minister said.

This first step will be followed up by a completely new cancer plan, which from 2025 will ensure DKK 600 million (€80.4 million) are invested into cancer treatment each year to ensure cancer is detected earlier and that inequalities in cancer treatments are addressed.

However, these DKK 600 million per year are not earmarked until 2025, and according to Home Affairs and Health Minister Sophie Løhde, the Danish National Board of Health is now preparing a proposal for what such a cancer plan could look like.

“The proposal must be ready in 2024, and then the government will make the final plan,” she said.

(Charles Szumski | EURACTIV.com)