EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list)

Estonia had the highest unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list) of 26 EU countries in 2020, at 13%. Malta had the lowest, at 0%. The median was 1.6% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 1.9%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest13Estonia

Lowest0Malta

Median1.626 EU countries

European Union (27)1.9History

Map of EU countries, 2020

Under 0.4
0.4 to 1.5
1.5 to 1.7
1.7 to 3.2
3.2 and over
No data

%, 2020. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: Eurostat, Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2020

%. Source: Eurostat, Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	EU countries	2020 (%)	Change on 2019
1	Estonia	13	-2.5 pts
2	Greece	6.5	-1.6 pts
3	Finland	5.4	+0.8 pts
4	Latvia	5.3	+1 pts
5	Romania	4.7	-0.2 pts
6	Slovakia	3.2	+0.5 pts
7	France Series break	2.7	+1.5 pts
7	Slovenia	2.7	-0.2 pts
9	Poland	1.9	-2.3 pts
10	Ireland Series break	1.8	-0.2 pts
11	Denmark	1.7	-0.1 pts
11	Lithuania	1.7	+0.3 pts
13	Portugal	1.6	-0.1 pts
14	Belgium	1.5	-0.3 pts
14	Croatia	1.5	+0.1 pts
14	Sweden	1.5	+0.1 pts
17	Bulgaria	1.4	0 pts
18	Hungary	0.7	-0.3 pts
19	Cyprus	0.4	-0.6 pts
19	Czechia	0.4	-0.1 pts
19	Spain	0.4	+0.2 pts
22	Netherlands	0.2	0 pts
23	Austria	0.1	-0.2 pts
23	Germany Series break	0.1	-0.2 pts
23	Luxembourg Series break	0.1	-0.1 pts
26	Malta	0	0 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Share of people aged 16 and over who say that in the previous 12 months they needed a medical examination or treatment and did not get it because it was too expensive, too far to travel or the waiting list was too long (EU statistics on income and living conditions, EU-SILC).

Self-reported, and measured over everyone aged 16 and over, not only those who needed care. Dental care is asked separately and is not included. The reference year is the survey year.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. 1 EU countries with data in other periods have no value for 2020 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08) (EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list), 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table

MLA 9

Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08), EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list), 2020. Eurostat, European Commission, 17 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unmet-need-for-medical-care/eu-countries?period=2020. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08). EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list), 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unmet-need-for-medical-care/eu-countries?period=2020.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08), EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list), 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unmet-need-for-medical-care/eu-countries?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_unmet_2020,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth\_silc\_08): EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list), 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unmet-need-for-medical-care/eu-countries?period=2020. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth\_silc\_08). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth\_silc\_08/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08): EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list), 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/17
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/unmet-need-for-medical-care/eu-countries?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unmet-need-for-medical-care/eu-countries?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/hlth_silc_08/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Rank EU countries by unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list) using official data, and cite the source.

rank_places {"indicator":"unmet_medical_need_share","level":"country","within":"European Union (27)","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=unmet_medical_need_share&level=country&within=European%20Union%20(27)&limit=10

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Questions

Which EU country has the highest unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list)?

Estonia, with 13% in 2020, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest unmet need for medical care (cost, distance or waiting list)?

Malta, with 0% in 2020.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Self-reported unmet needs for medical examination, too expensive, too far to travel or waiting list, aged 16 and over (hlth_silc_08). Retrieved 2026-10-12. 1 EU countries have no value for 2020 and are not ranked.