Public Healthcare in Italy

The existence of health disparities has always fueled my passion in healthcare. Not everyone has equal access to the healthcare that they need to survive. That is one thing I would love to help change in the world because everyone should be able to get the help that they need. That is one reason why I truly appreciate the public healthcare system in Italy. This system allows for everyone to go to the doctor, for free or at low cost. Through the National Health Service all citizens and legal foreign residents are covered by the public health care sector. In 1998 emergency and essential services began to be provided for undocumented immigrants too (Donatini, Reed, & Squires, n.d.). The only people not covered under the public health care system are tourists, though there are several health clinics in Florence to provide care to foreign citizens at moderate fees.

The system is funded by the government paid through the taxes of the residents, voluntary health insurance, corporate and noncorporate companies, and visits, procedures, and medicines that are not covered by the public healthcare scope (Donatini et al., n.d.). Public healthcare covers a lot of services including regular visits with a general practitioner, pharmaceuticals, inpatient care, preventive medicine, outpatient care, specialist care, home care, primary care, hospice care, mental care and so much more (Donatini et al., n.d.). Even dental care is covered for children 16 and younger as well for other at-risk populations and people who are in emergency or economic need. Things that are not covered include cosmetic surgery, services covered only on a case-by-case basis (e.g., orthodontics and laser eye surgery), and services for which hospital admissions are likely to be inappropriate, such as cataract surgery. These services are provided but must be funded by the patient themselves, or the region of the hospital can cover it for them (Donatini et al., n.d.).

The system is not always perfect; sometimes wait times reach weeks or months, patients do not get to always pick their doctor, doctors could switch in the middle of care giving, and sometimes they are not always friendly. In my opinion, the few downfalls do not outweigh the benefits of this amazing system. If a person is unhappy with the service provided by the public healthcare system, they are always welcome to pay for quicker service and a more tailored healthcare experience in the private system. There are always options, which is another reason Italy’s healthcare system is so outstanding. In 2000, Italy’s healthcare system was ranked second best in the world (behind France) in a ranking by the World Health Organization (WHO) (World Health Organization, 2000). Also, according to WHO the average life expectancy of a person born in Italy in 2015 was 82.7 years, while in the United States, life expectancy was only 79.3 at that time (World Health Organization, 2016). This could be attributed to some of the healthy lifestyle habits that Italians have, but also to the exceptional care that is provided by the public healthcare system.

This post was written by Taylor Quarles, a senior in Developmental and Family Science. She has a concentration in Child Development and a minor in Biology. She intends to go to medical school after graduating.

Donatini, A., Reed, S. J., & Squires, D. (n.d.). Italy : International Health Care System Profiles. Retrieved July 12, 2017, from http://international.commonwealthfund.org/countries/italy/

World Health Organization. (2000, June 21). WHO | World Health Organization Assesses the World’s Health Systems. Retrieved July 26, 2017, from http://www.who.int/whr/2000/media_centre/press_release/en/

World Health Organization. (2016, June 6). GHO | By category | Life expectancy - Data by country. Retrieved July 26, 2017, from http://apps.who.int/gho/data/view.main.SDG2016LEXv?lang=en