Sweden A Welfare State

1. SwedenA Welfare State Ch 4, section 3 Text pages 138-144

2. Objectives • Learn about Sweden’s welfare state. • Find out how Sweden became a welfare state. • Examine possible solutions to Sweden’s economic problems.

3. Where in the world is Sweden?

4. Key Terms • Welfare state: a country in which many services and benefits are paid for by the governments. • National debt: the amount of money a government owes. U.S. National Debt= Sweden’s National Debt=1,060,796,469,948 kr

5. Fast Facts about Sweden • Capital: Stockholm • Population: 8.9 million • Ethnic Groups: Swedish, Finnish, Sami • Religions: Protestants, Roman Catholics, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist • Government: Constitutional Monarchy (Crown Princess Victoria and new baby) • Currency: Swedish Krona • Leading Exports: machinery, motor vehicles, paper products, pulp and wood, iron and steel products, chemicals • Language: Swedish (official), Finnish, Sami

6. A Welfare State • Sweden is a welfare state, the government provides many services and benefits either for free or for a very low cost. • This system is very different than in the U.S. • Sweden’s welfare system= help for everyone. • United States welfare system= helps only people who are in great need!

7. A Cradle-to-Grave System • Sweden has a cradle-to-grave welfare system. This system provides basic services for all people at every stage of life.

8. WOW!!!!!! • Sweden’s welfare system provides the following benefits: • When a child is born, the gov. pays for parents to stay home from work for at least 12 months. (U.S. sick leave is approx. 6 wks) • When the parents return to work, the gov. pays for child care at a reduced cost. (I pay approx. $5,000.00 yearly for day care) • The gov. pays the cost of schooling, books and lunches for ALL students. (U.S. only helps those that qualify and are in great need.) • College education is also paid for every student. (U.S. only helps those that are in need through financial aid.)

9. Continued…. • Every Swedish student has access to free or inexpensive health care. U.S.= Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act “Obama care” is reforming the public and private health insurance industry. It increases coverage of pre-existing conditions and expanding health insurance coverage to over 30 million Americans

10. So what’s the catch? How does Sweden pay for all of these benefits? Answer: Extremely high taxes!!

11. Facing Challenges For decades, Sweden was able to offer its citizens generous benefits. In the 1980’s people bought fewer items because of the high taxes on groceries, clothing, and other goods. Therefore, the economy suffered. The government had to borrow money to pay for all of the benefits. This increased Sweden’s national debt.

12. A Graying Population An aging population presents even greater challenges. • All funding comes from the paychecks of Swedish workers. • An aging population has fewer workers. • As a result…. there is less tax money to pay for future benefits.

13. Government Solutions • The government reformed its own budget process through new rules, such as balanced budget requirements, surplus goals, and spending limits. • Today, Sweden is trying to reduce benefits and is requiring workers to save their own money towards retirement.