The number of hospital beds in Sweden decreased since year 2000. There were around 31.8 thousand hospital beds in Sweden in 2000, and in 2019, there were around 21.3 thousand hospital beds. During these years, the majority of the hospital beds were in public sector-owned hospitals.  

Public and private hospital beds      

 The number of hospital beds in the public sector generally decreased during the period from 2009 to 2019, and in 2020 there were 2.0 per thousand inhabitants. The number of private hospital beds increased in 2012, and stayed at 0.2 beds per thousand inhabitants from 2012 to 2020.

 Hospital beds in Denmark showed similar trend       

 Sweden’s neighboring country Denmark basically followed the same pattern in the number of hospital beds. The hospital beds in Denmark generally decreased during the period, from almost 23 thousand beds in 2000 to around an estimated 15 thousand in 2019.

The number of hospital beds in Sweden decreased during the period from 2000 to 2022. In 2022, there were almost 20 thousand hospital beds in Sweden. During these years, the majority of the hospital beds were in public sector-owned hospitals. In 2020, the public sector had two beds per thousand inhabitants, while the private sector had 0.2 beds per thousand inhabitants.Health care expenditure The total expenditure on health care in Sweden, as share of the gross domestic product (GDP) was overall higher from 2011 on. The share was relatively stable during the following period, with some fluctuations, and reached almost 11 percent in 2023, which was relatively high compared to in other OECD member countries.  Hospital beds in Denmark showed similar trend Sweden’s neighboring country Denmark basically followed the same pattern in the number of hospital beds. The hospital beds in Denmark generally decreased between 2010 and 2023, from over 20 thousand beds in 2010 to around an estimated 14.5 thousand in 2023.