Italy’s healthcare system under threat, experts warn

5 months ago 30

Italy’s national healthcare system faces intense scrutiny from regional authorities, scientists, and a Nobel laureate, who challenge the government’s handling of the system in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.

Funding for Italian healthcare has reached a 17-year low, as highlighted in a recent report to parliament by the Corte dei Conti. This report revealed a significant decline in Italy’s national health fund compared to countries like Germany and France.

Specifically, the ratio of healthcare spending to GDP has dropped from 6.8% to 6.3%, and it will stay the same on average for the next couple of years. The OECD and EU average is 7.1%, while France and Germany are around 10%.

The debate over health funding has escalated beyond political differences into a potential institutional clash between regional authorities and central government.

At a hearing on the measures included in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan on 4 April, the Conference of the Regions issued an ultimatum, asking the government to repeal the article that cuts €1.2 billion earmarked for hospitals for earthquake safety measures. Failure to comply could lead the regions to take the matter to the Constitutional Court.

Just the day before, on 3 April, 14 of Italy’s leading scientists, including Nobel laureate Giorgio Parisi and the president of the Higher Health Council, Franco Locatelli, signed an appeal calling for the protection and revitalisation of Italy’s National Health Service.

They pointed to the decline in some health indicators, the increasing difficulty of access to diagnostic and treatment services, and the growing regional and social inequalities. They underlined the urgent need to bring healthcare funding up to the standards of advanced European countries, with a goal of 8% of GDP.

In an interview with Euractiv Italy, Nobel laureate Giorgio Parisi said: “Very often, Italy has evolved to go in the same direction as the United States. It would be disastrous if this happened to health care as well. In the United States, there is no natural National Health Service, and everything is left to the private sector”.

“The National Health Service not only allows all citizens their constitutionally guaranteed right to access health care but is also a shield to prevent unreasonable increases in health care costs”, he added.

Elena Granaglia, a professor and member of the Inequalities and Diversity Forum, told Euractiv Italy that the scientists’ appeal was a strong wake-up call for the government, parliament and citizens.

She warned that Italy’s vital universal healthcare system is at risk of collapse without adequate public funding. “If public funding is cut, the only alternative is the growth of private funding: as empirical evidence shows, private health care costs more, creates inequalities and increases the risks of inadequacy,” she added.

The National Federation of the Orders of Surgeons and Dentists echoed these concerns, with President Filippo Anelli stressing the importance of prioritising healthcare in times of crisis in an interview with Euractiv Italia.

He urged investment in health professionals, including addressing stagnant salaries and improving working conditions to retain talent and stem the exodus of doctors to other countries (nearly 40,000 have left in five years).

Anelli also called for recruitment caps to be lifted and for the national health service to be made more attractive to ensure its sustainability and effectiveness in meeting citizens’ healthcare needs.

(Alessia Peretti, Simone Cantarini, Euractiv.it)