Healthcare like in 1960, Berisha: Albanians live 7 years less and pay 3 times more than Germans

The leader of the Democratic Party, Sali Berisha, spoke about healthcare in Albania during a press conference.

Berisha said that, unfortunately, healthcare in our country has returned to the 1960s.

Berisha stated that Albanians today live 7 years less and pay 3 times more than Germans.

Berisha: The Albanian health service has experienced catastrophic degradation and in some basic indicators has returned to the 1960s.

First, if this service has as its main goal the fight against diseases, prolonging life and developing and promoting health, today Albanian citizens live 7 years less than EU citizens.

Secondly, in one of the most fundamental indicators of the health system, but also of the social system in society, which is infant mortality, Albania is 3 times worse than Montenegro, because we have to compare it with the region, and twice worse than other countries in the region, if we do not go to EU member states.

Third, and where Albania has fallen back to the level of the 1960s, are the number of doctors and nurses per capita. Today Albanians have 2.5 times fewer doctors and nurses than EU citizens. If in 2013, Albanian citizens had one doctor for 600 inhabitants, today Albanian citizens have turned around and have one doctor for 1100 inhabitants.

Albanians today die from heart disease 1.8 times more than EU citizens.

They die from malignant diseases, twice as many as EU citizens, due to the mistreatment of these diseases as you are known.

Albanians today have two times fewer hospitals and hospital beds than other countries in the region and the EU.

Albanians, who were promised free healthcare, today pay for their healthcare 5 times more than Germans, 3 times more than Italians. They pay 60 percent of the expenses needed for the healthcare system out of their own pockets.

These indicators testify to a major reversal, a rapid and lightning-fast degradation of the health system.

Albania, which in 2012-2013 was ranked as one of the countries with the best access to health services, today is the country with the greatest lack of access and inequality in health services.

Other major problems are the poor quality of health services. There is a significant lack of standards for the functioning of health services, both in the public and private sectors.

The efficiency of this service is very low. A terrible mafia has developed in recent years between the public and private sectors, which has only one goal, the greatest possible robbery of patients in Albania.

The offer for him is mediocre or completely substandard.

Centralization in the public system has an equivalent only in North Korea.

The funding is ridiculous and negligible.

Albania finances healthcare 2-3 times less than countries in the region.

I talked about human resources, which are experiencing a massive exodus due to unacceptable salaries.

Complete lack of digitalization. Albanian doctors are the only ones in Europe and beyond who fill out medical records by hand. The digital record, which was completed in 2013, was archived and the manual paper record continues.

The health information exchange system, which was launched with a 14 million euro loan from the Austrian government, never came to fruition and nothing is known about its fate.