A newly published World Bank report notes that a larger support on own
individual funds has made the Albanian health system one of the most
unequal in Europe and Asia.
According to the report, Albanians spend a total of 750 million EUR each year for medical treatment, and 40% of this is paid by the government. The other 60% is paid by the citizens.
This number makes Albania the fifth country in Europe and Central Asia with families paying most of the treatment from their own budget, after Aserbaijan, Tajikistan, Georgia and Armenia.
The average of the European Union is 17%, or three times smaller.
But what are the consequences of this situation? The World Bank says that when citizens are obliged to pay their medical treatment from their own pocket, the health system becomes unequal and favors the rich people, and limits the access of the poor to basic health service. This is because they do not have sufficient revenues and cannot pay for the service.
To measure this inequality, World Bank experts have used one indicator called the concentration index, which varies from -1 for countries that have a health system in favor of the poor, and 1 for those who favor the rich.
With a 0.2 coefficient, Albania is the fifth country with the most unequal system in Europe and Asia. This means that an Albanian citizen of lower income has more difficulties to find a proper health care than other citizens in the continent.
As the World Bank states, the medical spending for 17% of the Albanian families goes beyond 10% of the revenues.
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