The recent 2023 Italian Regional Healthcare Report Card has shed light on the state of healthcare across the country, indicating significant variations among regions. A total of thirteen regions and autonomous provinces managed to achieve sufficient scores across all healthcare areas—preventive care, district assistance, and hospital care—while others struggled to meet the minimum requirements. According to the report published by the Ministry of Health on February 27, 2025, the national healthcare system shows improvement particularly in hospital services, but falls short on prevention and territorial care.
The report reveals the regions in compliance include Piemonte, Lombardia, the Autonomous Province of Trento, Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Emilia Romagna, Toscana, Umbria, Marche, Lazio, Campania, Puglia, and Sardegna. Conversely, regions like Valle D’Aosta, Abruzzo, Calabria, and Sicily were found lacking as they failed to reach adequacy in multiple areas. Notably, Lombardy has seen a significant decline, dropping from fourth to sixth place, largely due to reduced performance in territorial care. Governor Attilio Fontana expressed his outrage over the rankings, declaring them "absolutely unacceptable," and attributed the ratings to flawed parameters set forth by the assessment.
Meanwhile, entering the fray of regional performance, the report found Veneto topping the healthcare chart with a score of 96 points out of 100, buoyed by its notable advancements in preventive care. Emilia-Romagna, having reigned at the top of the list, fell to third place with its scores showing a decline across multiple metrics. President Michele de Pascale of Emilia-Romagna noted, "Our region is undoubtedly in the top tier of Italian regions. We continuously strive for improvements, especially where we’ve identified shortcomings during our campaign discussions."
On the other hand, Fontana's assertion points to his frustration with the perceived penalization of Lombardy’s healthcare system. He claimed the criteria employed to determine rankings are unsuitable and do not reflect the operational status of services accurately, calling these perceived inaccuracies as "nonsense."
Political tensions are evident as the report not only outlined numerical standings but also prompted reactions from various officeholders. Pierfrancesco Majorino, the PD group leader of the Lombardy Regional Council, countered Fontana’s outrage by emphasizing, "What’s unacceptable is not the ministerial rankings, but rather the stagnation of Fontana's administration which has led to protracted waiting lists and weakened local healthcare services." The criticism highlights broader concerns about the systemic management and delivery of healthcare services for citizens, particularly those residing in more remote areas.
The report, evaluating healthcare performance based on 88 indicators across three primary areas—hospital care, district assistance, and prevention—serves as more than just a ranking mechanism. It functions to highlight where progress is necessary to guarantee citizens' rights to fundamental healthcare services. Given the data, it's clear the national healthcare system is improving, yet significant challenges remain. District and preventive care still require urgent attention after falling behind, especially after the marked decline observed during the pandemic's height.
The continued backlash from state officials and the involvement of various healthcare stakeholders signal impending discussions about healthcare policy reform slated for March. Groups advocating for improvements will be tasked with ensuring adequate resources and support are allocated effectively across all regional health systems. The emphasis moving forward will be on reforming areas of concern highlighted by the report, urging stakeholders to coalesce around practical solutions for enhancing the healthcare experience of all Italians.
Overall, the 2023 report on Italian regional healthcare reflects significant achievements across the spectrum, though it illuminates the considerable disparities persisting among different areas. How regions respond to these findings will critically shape the nation's healthcare discourse moving forward.