Is Private Primary Care More Efficient Than Public Primary Care?

Abstract: Efficiency and markets. Since the Act on Free Choice Systems was made mandatory in 2010, allowing for private actors to enter the Swedish primary care sector, the efficiency dimension has gained increased importance. The intent of this study is to investigate whether efficiency differs between private and public primary care centers in Sweden. By using public data covering Swedish primary care centers' scores on (i) patient-perceived quality, (ii) phone accessibility, (iii) ability to set up appointments with doctors and (iv) county councils' cost per capita, the conclusion is that private providers seem to deliver slightly higher perceived quality of primary care. It is also suggested that private providers perform slightly better on the two accessibility measures phone accessibility and appointments with doctors. Support is not found for differences in cost-effectiveness between private and public care centers. Furthermore, data show that primary care centers located in the five county councils that have had the highest increase in private actors' market share deliver higher perceived quality of primary care.