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The aim of this paper is to examine the determinants of healthcare expenditure in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries. The study covers the period between the years 2000 and 2018. In our research, we implement error correction based on an autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model, with focus on the Pooled Mean Group (PMG) estimator. Our estimation results revealed that, in combination, health spending, income, medical progress, population ageing and fiscal capacity together form a statistically significant and stable long-term economic relationship. Our analysis indicates that healthcare spending responds to both short-term and long-term income changes. The obtained results support the prevailing view that health should not be considered a luxury good with an income elasticity close to unity. In the long term, medical progress and population ageing also significantly influence health spending, whilst these variables prove to be insignificant over the short term. Ultimately, government capacity is positively related to health spending dynamics.

The past few decades have been marked by a substantial increase in health spending in Central and Eastern European countries. At the same time, healthcare systems have experienced significant changes, as a consequence of economic and political transformation processes that these countries have undergone after the fall of communism. The aim of this paper was to briefly present current situation and trends in healthcare financing in Central and Eastern European countries. Our approach is based on an analysis of a number of healthcare expenditures indicators which are connected to healthcare spending patterns in each of these countries. Comparative research of these countries aims to demonstrate a degree of similarities or variations in the structure and finances in health systems. According to results, public involvement in health financing is still dominant in the majority of countries, but it has recorded a downward trend. On the other hand, private spending has been increasing mostly due to increase in out-of-pocket payments. Key words: healthcare expenditures, public health spending, out-of-pocket payments, CEE countries

The aim of this paper is to analyze controversies of modern macroeconomic theories in the period of the global economic crisis. Ideas, disagreement and similarities between the most important theories in relation to state intervention and anti-crisis economic policy are presented. The topical research has found a connection between the roots of the global economic crisis and the paradigm of new liberal theories. The crisis has confirmed that the idea of self-regulation in the private sector is untenable in practice. In times of crisis, the leading theoretical framework in economic policy is reexamined. Rules-based monetary and fiscal policies are replaced by discretionary decision-making. In the world economies affected by the crisis, anti-Keynesian cyclical measures of monetary and fiscal policies were implemented. A comprehensive and unequivocal reaffirmation of Keynesianism in anti-crisis policies has confirmed the assumption of the circularity of economic theories. Central banks quickly reduced their key interest rates and increased their money supply. Fiscal authorities implemented expansive stimulus programs. When creating a new macroeconomic paradigm, market imperfection must be taken into account as well as a limited range of government economic policies.