Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq

Iraq: Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care was 26.4% in 2018. ▲ Rising

Latest (2018)
26.4%
Change on year
down 20.7%
World rank
43rd
of 134 countries
All-time high
54.2%
in 2003
All-time low
6.4%
in 2008
Years of data
12
2003–2018

Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq, 2003–2018

10203040502003201020182003: 54.2 % of people at risk2004: 17.6 % of people at risk2005: 18.9 % of people at risk2006: 20.9 % of people at risk2007: 15.3 % of people at risk2008: 6.4 % of people at risk2012: 33.2 % of people at risk2013: 31.3 % of people at risk2014: 34.6 % of people at risk2016: 53.2 % of people at risk2017: 33.3 % of people at risk2018: 26.4 % of people at risk

Source: Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School. Measured in % of people at risk.

Analysis

In 2018, risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq stood at 26.4%.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 20.7% on the previous year and up 312.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq peaked at 54.2% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 6.4%, in 2008.

Iraq ranks 43rd of 134 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.

Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq, year by year

Annual values for Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk) in Iraq, 2003 to 2018.
Year % of people at risk Change
2003 54.2%
2004 17.6% -67.5%
2005 18.9% +7.4%
2006 20.9% +10.6%
2007 15.3% -26.8%
2008 6.4% -58.2%
2012 33.2% +418.8%
2013 31.3% -5.7%
2014 34.6% +10.5%
2016 53.2% +53.8%
2017 33.3% -37.4%
2018 26.4% -20.7%

Iraq compared with similar countries

  • Iraq's 26.4% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 10.4%, 2.5× the median. (41 countries reporting)
  • Iraq's 26.4% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 23.6%, 1.1× the median. (12 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 22.2% 6.4% 54.2% 6
2010s 35.3% 26.4% 53.2% 6

Countries ranked near Iraq

  1. 40 Sri Lanka 29.2% compare
  2. 41 Senegal 28.4% compare
  3. 42 Egypt 26.6% compare
  4. 44 Paraguay 25.2% compare
  5. 45 Azerbaijan 23.1% compare
  6. 45 Brazil 23.1% compare

See the full ranking of 173 places →

More health data for Iraq

All data for Iraq →

Frequently asked questions

What is risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq?
Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq was 26.4% in 2018, according to Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School.
What is the highest risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care recorded in Iraq?
The highest recorded value was 54.2% in 2003.
What is the lowest risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care recorded in Iraq?
The lowest recorded value was 6.4% in 2008.
How does Iraq rank for risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care?
Iraq ranks 43rd out of 134 countries with data for 2018.
Is risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care rising or falling in Iraq?
Over the last ten years it is up 312.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Iraq data come from?
The figures come from Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School, published as part of Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq. Statizoid, drawing on Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School. Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/risk-of-catastrophic-expenditure-for-surgical-care-percent-of-people-at-risk/iraq/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/stat/risk-of-catastrophic-expenditure-for-surgical-care-percent-of-people-at-risk/iraq/">Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care in Iraq</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk)
Unit
% of people at risk
Source
Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
173 places, 3,065 data points, 2003–2022
Last refreshed

The proportion of population at risk of catastrophic expenditure when surgical care is required. Catastrophic expenditure is defined as direct out of pocket payments for surgical and anaesthesia care exceeding 10% of total income.