ABSTRACT
One of the most important characteristics of the Swedish health care system is that it is overwhelmingly public in regard to financing, ownership of health care facilities, policy planning and control. Successive changes of the health law during recent decades have put a stronger emphasis on integrated approaches between the different activities to enhance and restore health. The Swedish health care system has been very comprehensive and the system components have been developed and linked to each other in a similar way all over the 26 county councils. The Swedish health care system has a public character in its tax financing, with political decision-making at county council level and the traditionally strong influence from national planning and supervising agencies. All priority decisions above the level of individual patients (services, specialties, structure within a county council) are taken by the county council political boards.
