Latvia's emergency medical service to get nearly €580,000 for fuel costs

Latvia's Ministry of Health has drafted an order to allocate 578,307 euros to the Emergency Medical Service (NMPD) from the state's "funds for unforeseen circumstances" program. The additional financing is intended to offset a steep increase in fuel prices and allow the service to maintain its current level of emergency pre-hospital care through the rest of the year.

Budget already under strain

NMPD's 2026 budget allocated 2,237,366 euros for fuel purchases. However, by August 21 actual fuel expenses had already reached 1,816,823 euros, suggesting the existing budget may not cover costs for the remainder of the year.

The ministry attributes the price increase to geopolitical developments. According to the Central Statistical Bureau, diesel prices rose 10% year-on-year as of July, while gasoline prices climbed 11.3%.

Service warned of the risk back in spring

As early as April, NMPD had warned that rising fuel prices could pose serious challenges to its operations by year's end. At the time, the service calculated that a diesel price of two euros per liter would create a 1.07 million euro deficit in its budget. NMPD also noted then that its planned funding would be sufficient to sustain pre-hospital services only through roughly September.

The draft order for the additional funding has now been submitted for interagency coordination, running until September 14. The government still needs to make a final decision on the matter.