The president has decided. Poles will pay a huge tax

• There will be no lower health insurance premium for entrepreneurs. President Duda vetoed the bill.
• The reduction in health insurance contributions for entrepreneurs was passed by the Sejm on April 4 by votes of KO, Polska 2050-TD and PSL-TD.
• According to estimates, total health expenditure in 2024 amounted to approximately PLN 215 billion, of which the National Health Fund would spend over PLN 193 billion.

Andrzej Duda has vetoed a law lowering health insurance contributions for entrepreneurs. The president's decision was announced on Tuesday by his chancellery chief Małgorzata Paprocka, who pointed out, among other things, that "the law raises very serious doubts in terms of social justice and is contrary to constitutional principles."

Let us recall that the change adopted by the Parliament applies to over 2.5 million business owners and was to cost the state budget PLN 4.6 billion.

• The amendment assumed the introduction of a two-element basis for calculating the health insurance contribution for entrepreneurs - up to a certain level it would be a lump sum, and for the excess income - a percentage.
• Higher contributions than currently would be paid by taxpayers with the highest income who settle their tax on a lump sum basis on recorded income.

As we wrote in WNP, according to estimates, total health expenditure in 2024 amounted to approximately PLN 215 billion, of which over PLN 193 billion in the National Health Fund. Dr. Sławomir Dudek, chief economist of the Institute of Public Finance, said in an interview with PAP that the shortfall is getting bigger every year. At the same time, he emphasized that the gap in the National Health Fund is financed by taxpayers.

We predict that the financial gap in a few years may amount to PLN 90 billion. In percentage terms, it may reach 30 percent, which means that almost 1/3 of the health expenditure in the National Health Fund will not be covered by contributions. In a word, in a veiled way, we will have to finance it with other taxes and fees. There is no leniency here. We will have to finance all of this from the state budget - he said.

He also explained what the "budget hole" of the National Health Fund looked like in recent years:

• in 2018 it amounted to PLN 3.3 billion;
• in 2022 - PLN 7 billion,
• in 2023 - PLN 20 billion,
• in 2024 - PLN 30 billion.

The Center for Legislative Analysis and Economic Policy (CALPE) has calculated that if the government increases spending on healthcare in accordance with the Act, the National Health Fund will have to receive an additional PLN 62 billion from the budget in 2025-2027. What does that mean?

- We have to cover this shortfall from the state budget , which means taking money from other ministers or raising taxes for someone. In such a situation, it will not be enough for everyone - explained Sławomir Dudek.