Latvia’s Health Ministry estimates healthcare needs at €826 million — LSM English
Latvia’s Ministry of Health has estimated the additional funding needed by the healthcare system next year at €826 million. The largest share of this amount — €406 million, or 49% of total needs — is required to improve the accessibility and quality of medical services, LSM English reports.
Funds for medicines and salaries
Another €135 million, according to the ministry’s estimate, is needed to improve the reimbursement system for medicines and medical supplies. This year, the funding shortfall for reimbursed medicines already amounts to €35 million.
€236 million is needed to raise pay for medical professionals and other sector employees. This would make it possible to increase the salaries of medical specialists by 24% and those of other healthcare workers by €120. Līga Kozlovska, head of the Latvian Association of Rural Family Doctors and a member of parliament, said that the average salary of Latvian doctors, excluding certain highly specialized professions, is below the national average. The association is demanding a pay increase of at least 25.4%, including for physician assistants, nurses and support staff.
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Nurse shortage
Latvia has four nurses per thousand residents. By comparison, the figure is nearly seven in Estonia, nearly eight in Lithuania, while the European Union average is nine nurses per thousand people.
Over the past ten years, doctors’ salaries have increased by 10.6% and nurses’ salaries by 6.5%, while the country’s average salary has risen by 31%. The minimum pay for support staff remains around €800. Alise Nicmane-Aišpure, president of the Latvian Association of Family Doctors, called on politicians to strengthen the position of nurses, physician assistants and midwives, stressing that shortages of such staff force doctors to perform their work.
Boriss Knigins, deputy state secretary at the Ministry of Health, noted that the state budget is still being drafted, so it is too early to discuss the possible amount of funding. At the same time, demand for healthcare services is growing due to population ageing and an increase in the number of patients with chronic diseases.
