Rēvalds: Latvia's Healthcare Problems Stem Not Only from Lack of Funds but Also from Careless Use of Public Money

Māris Rēvalds, chairman of the board of "Veselības centrs 4", said on the TV24 programme "Nacionālo interešu klubs" that Latvia's healthcare problems are caused not only by insufficient funding but also by irresponsible handling of public money and poorly thought-out construction projects. He criticised the state's approach to using limited resources.

Lack of accountability in decisions

Rēvalds believes one of the fundamental problems is the inertia of socialist-style thinking and a lack of responsibility when decisions about public funds are made. According to him, this is not unique to healthcare. He named other large infrastructure projects as examples, including "Rail Baltica".

He was most critical of the halted construction of a new building at Stradiņš hospital, calling it one of the clearest examples of irresponsible conduct. In Rēvalds' view, money spent ineptly on construction could have been used for healthcare needs, such as improving access to reimbursed medicines and saving patients' lives.

Using private facilities

Rēvalds stressed that there is no need to privatise all healthcare. However, he urged the state to make greater use of private medical facilities that have already been built, provided they can deliver the necessary services at the same price as the public sector. In his opinion, where private investors have already built a facility with their own money, the state should consider contracting to buy services instead of investing public money again in similar infrastructure.

He also disputed claims that private providers, when contracted by the National Health Service, offer services at commercial prices higher than in the public sector. Rēvalds said this notion does not match what he described as the contract terms, and that private providers can receive the same payment as the public sector.

In his view, this approach would avoid additional infrastructure spending, save money and allow it to be redirected to other healthcare needs.