Pre-election debate sees parties clash over Latvia's healthcare crisis

In a pre-election debate broadcast by TV24, representatives of several Latvian political parties discussed the state of the country's healthcare system, revealing both shared calls for increased sector funding and differing approaches to fixing its problems.

Funding and medication costs

Agnese Lāce of the Progressives party called for raising healthcare funding to 6% of gross domestic product (GDP), stressing the importance of prevention and proposing a cap on co-payments for reimbursable medications, following Estonia's example. Evika Siliņa of New Unity said her party, while in government, had already increased support for reimbursable medications, and she likewise backed the 6% of GDP target. The Union of Greens and Farmers' representative Daiga Mieriņa also included this funding level in her party's programme, while highlighting problems with the hospital network and staff shortages in the regions.

Criticism of the minister and other proposals

Linda Liepiņa of the Latvia First party sharply criticized the current state of healthcare, arguing that Health Minister Hosams Abu Meri had failed to ensure timely help for patients, including those suffering heart attacks, and that people were dying while waiting in line for treatment.

Edvards Smiltēns of the United List proposed transforming the National Health Service into a fund and introducing a principle where the state pays for results rather than processes, alongside conducting an audit of the sector. Ināra Mūrniece of the National Alliance pointed to year-long waiting times for medical examinations and called for greater involvement of the private sector. Rūdolfs Brēmanis of the Sovereign Power/Latvian New Union alliance highlighted the extra costs diabetes patients face for monitoring devices and insulin pumps, as well as pensioners' difficulties affording dental care.