What Is Happening in Sweden?

Election to the parliament was held in Sweden on 9 September 2018. None of the traditional political blocks obtained a majority of the vote. The nationalist Sweden Democrats party increased their share of the vote from 13% in 2014 elections to 17% of the vote in 2018. As no traditional political block wants to collaborate with the Sweden Democrats, no new government has yet been formed, more than 2 months after the election. Health care was a prominent issue in the elections. Health care in Sweden is universal and tax-funded, with a strong emphasis on equity. However, recent reforms have emphasized market-orientation and privatization in order to increase access to care, and may not contribute to equity. In spite of a majority of the population being opposed to profits being made on publicly funded services, privatization of health and social care has increased in the last decades. The background to this is described. Health is improving in Sweden, but inequalities remain and increase. The Swedish Public Health Policy from 2003 has been revised in 2018, on the basis of a national review of inequalities in health. The revised policy further emphasizes reducing inequalities in health.