New HiT to mark Slovak EU Presidency

The Slovak health system has been undergoing transformational reform since the early 2000s. The 2002 reform introduced a competitive insurance model with selective contracting and flexible pricing. The key features of this reform are, however, still the topic of heated debate and consequent modifications. The Ministry of Health is addressing persistent inefficiencies in the Slovak health system including, in particular, unequal access, late treatment of noncommunicable diseases, poor coordination, and overburdened GPs offloading patients to specialists. Enacted projects such as incentivising young medical doctors to rural areas are promising. However, most of the work in primary care reforms have partially remained conceptual or unimplemented. The new Slovakia HiT provides an up-to-date assessment on reforms and current initiatives, and the Slovak health system in general, and discusses important challenges for the future.