Coverage of essential health services in North Korea
North Korea: Coverage of essential health services was 77 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Coverage of essential health services in North Korea, 2000–2023
Source: Universal Health Coverage Dataset, WHO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for coverage of essential health services in North Korea is 77, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 1.3% on the previous year and unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, coverage of essential health services in North Korea peaked at 80 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 70, in 2000.
That places North Korea 70th out of 193 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Coverage of essential health services in North Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 70 | — |
| 2001 | 70 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 71 | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 71 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 72 | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 72 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 72 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 73 | +1.4% |
| 2008 | 74 | +1.4% |
| 2009 | 74 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 75 | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 73 | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 76 | +4.1% |
| 2013 | 77 | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 78 | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 79 | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 80 | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 80 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 79 | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 80 | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 80 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 80 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 76 | -5.0% |
| 2023 | 77 | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 71.9 | 70 | 74 | 10 |
| 2010s | 77.7 | 73 | 80 | 10 |
| 2020s | 78.25 | 76 | 80 | 4 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
More health data for North Korea
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.2456 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.16 % change on previous year (2100)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 767 deaths (2100)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,462 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 0 deaths (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 0 deaths (2026)
- Age population, age 16, male, interpolated 166,971 (2025)
- Age population, age 18, female, interpolated 159,845 (2025)
- Age population, age 17, male, interpolated 168,398 (2025)
- Age population, age 17, female, interpolated 160,530 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is coverage of essential health services in North Korea?
- Coverage of essential health services in North Korea was 77 in 2023, according to Universal Health Coverage Dataset, WHO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest coverage of essential health services recorded in North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 80 in 2016.
- What is the lowest coverage of essential health services recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 70 in 2000.
- How does North Korea rank for coverage of essential health services?
- North Korea ranks 70th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is coverage of essential health services rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Universal Health Coverage Dataset, WHO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Coverage of essential health services. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Coverage of essential health services is measured as an index on a scale of 0 to 100 (where higher is better). This index is based on risk-standardized death rates – which give a measure of healthcare access and quality – and whether common interventions are carried out.