TIRANA, March 24 – Albania has borrowed Euro 32.1 million in a soft loan from the World Bank to improve its ailing health system, perceived as one of the country’s most corrupt sectors. Speaking at the signing ceremony this week, Tahseen Sayed, the World Bank country manager for Albania said improving access, equity and quality of public health services translates into bringing tangible improvements in the lives of each and every citizen.
“The encouraging news for Albania is that health outcomes, including life expectancy, are relatively high compared with neighboring countries,” she added.
The World Bank says key health system performance indicators in Albania are mixed. “While health outcomes are relatively strong by regional standards, quality of care is a significant concern. The sector suffers from inefficiencies and inequities.”
“Out-of-pocket payments of patients accounts for more than half of total expenditures on health. With only half of the poor covered by social health insurance, increased health spending has pushed more households into poverty. Unofficial payments remain common, particularly in public hospitals.”
The health ministry has approved a health budget of around 400 million dollars for 2015 or around 2.8 percent of the GDP, which is considerably lower compared to the region’s average.
