title: [Health care costs in the last years of life: interesting, but for a different reason than is widely believed].
abstract: Health care costs have increased due to population ageing. It is often said that the majority of health care spending occurs in the last year of life and that, as a result, the total costs of population ageing are considerably lower than is usually predicted. With the Netherlands facing a rapidly ageing population, such statements are well-received by policy makers. Unfortunately they reflect only part of the truth and are therefore misleading. Nevertheless, health care costs in the last years of life are still interesting, but for a different reason than is widely believed. Taking a lifetime perspective, these costs shed new light on solidarity in health care.
authors.affiliation: Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM), Bilthoven.
authors.forename: Johan J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Polder
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wong
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D005102:Health Expenditures; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care / Q000191:economics; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000191:economics