Latvia spent €1.7 billion on state-funded healthcare in 2025
According to the National Health Service's annual report, Latvia allocated €1.701 billion for state-funded healthcare in 2025, of which 99.8% was spent. The largest shares went to emergency care and reimbursable medicines.
The National Health Service (NVD) has released its 2025 annual report, showing that €1.701 billion was allocated for state-funded healthcare last year — a 2.4% increase compared to 2024. Of that amount, €1.697 billion, or 99.8%, was actually spent, roughly €43 million more than the previous year.
Biggest spending categories
The largest single amount, €450.01 million, went toward emergency medical care in hospitals. This slight increase was mainly driven by strengthening hospital admission and emergency departments, as well as support provided to Ukrainian civilians in Latvia. Other outpatient healthcare services accounted for €366.23 million, a small decrease from 2024, with part of that sum covering settlements with other EU and EEA countries for care received abroad by Latvian residents.
Spending on reimbursable medicines and medical devices reached €320.65 million, up 12.3% from 2024. The increase reflects new drugs added to the reimbursement list and expanded treatment options for patients with rare diseases.
Planned inpatient hospital care cost €238.84 million, less than the year before, since 2024 included a one-time payment to hospitals tied to diagnosis-related groups that was not repeated in 2025. Primary outpatient care, including family doctor practices, received €225.67 million, while outpatient laboratory testing cost €64.23 million.
Vaccines and unforeseen expenses
Centralized procurement of medicines, including vaccines against human papillomavirus, whooping cough and pneumococcus, totaled €28.31 million. Spending on unforeseen circumstances reached €59.68 million — more than double the 2024 figure — mainly covering settlements with other European countries and mobile palliative care teams.
