Significant differences in mortality rates among the chronically ill are particularly troublesome.
According to Juhani Lehto, a researcher at the University of Tampere, individuals with higher salaries generally benefit from services offered by occupational health centres in addition to public healthcare facilities. Furthermore many of them are able to afford health insurance to help cover the costs of private care.
"Persons in the lower-income bracket only have one of these options available to them. Finland has not been able to address this issue politically," he says.
Correlations in overall health to one's income skyrocketed after the 1990s. The less fortunate are more likely to die from a chronic illness, like diabetes, than the better-off.
"The difference is significant. The disparity is particularly obvious when noting how persons in different income brackets make use of various healthcare services," says Ilmo Keskimäki, a researcher at Stakes.