ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses health care expenditure trends, examines the 1992 reforms, and describes the various cost-containment measures that have been introduced. The system is publicly funded and services are mainly privately provided by contracted-out providers. All reforms have respected the fundamental principles of Luxembourg's health care system, namely the free choice of provider by the patient, as well as the compulsory contracting out of all providers who must strictly respect the negotiated fixed fees. The government subsidizes the care of pensioners, who consume more health care compared with the active population, and whose contributions to health care are lower. The 1992 health insurance reforms have changed the methods of negotiating and fixing the fees of doctors, dentists and other health professions. The budget can be amended at the request of the hospitals or the Union of Sickness Funds in the event of projected economic conditions being overtaken by real events.
