Re:Check finds few health care pledges fulfilled

Latvia’s health care system continues to face shortages of funding and medical staff, long waiting lists and high out-of-pocket costs, and few promises made by political parties before the previous parliamentary election have been fulfilled, LSM reported, citing Re:Baltica’s fact-checking project Re:Check.

Re:Check examined pledges from five parties that served in government during the past four years: New Unity, the Union of Greens and Farmers, the Progressives, the National Alliance and the United List. The project reviewed the parties’ 4,000-character programmes published by the Central Election Commission and expanded programmes on party websites. Pledges were rated as fulfilled, partially fulfilled or unfulfilled.

The United List’s pledge to increase the number of health care professionals was rated fulfilled. Health Ministry data show that the total number of practising health care professionals rose by nearly 5,000 over the past four years. The number working in state and municipal hospitals increased by about 800 since 2022, according to the Health Inspectorate. However, the number of doctors in medical specialties fell by more than 2,000 compared with 2022.

Health Minister Hosams Abu Meri of New Unity said doctors were ageing and retiring, while it took time for new specialists to begin practising. United List lawmaker Linda Matisone said the party had worked to open more nursing study places at the University of Latvia, Riga Stradins University and Daugavpils University, raise resident doctors’ pay and increase funding for family doctors.

The United List’s pledge to make medicines and new technologies more accessible, including by changing how medicine prices are set, was rated partially fulfilled. A reform of prescription medicine prices was carried out during the 14th Saeima.