The healthcare sector will need to make approximately €600 million in adjustments next year, after the Federal Government's growth predictions are lower than predicted.
The real growth rate in Belgium’s healthcare sector will be lower than the 2% promised by Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke in his latest general policy note, La Libre reported on Tuesday.
The policy document submitted to the Chamber last week proposes maintaining a 2% growth rate for the healthcare budget in 2026 and 2027.
However, a report presented on Monday to the Inami (the National Institute of Disability Health Insurance) revealed that the Federal Planning Bureau estimates the actual net growth will be 1.8% by 2027.
This discrepancy stems from the government’s allocation of an "unusable amount" of €336 million in the 2027 budget. This amount cannot be spent, making the growth rate appear artificially higher.
Additionally, at current policy levels, healthcare expenditures are expected to rise faster than the "authorised" budget, which excludes unusable funds.
