The Osservasalute report in 2015 has revealed some surprises, some of which not positive for our country. Apart from a slight decrease in life expectancy, which fell from 80.3 for men and 85 for women in 2014 to 84.7 years for men and 80.1 for women, Italy allocates just 4.1 per cent of total health […]
The Osservasalute report in 2015 has revealed some surprises, some of which not positive for our country. Apart from a slight decrease in life expectancy, which fell from 80.3 for men and 85 for women in 2014 to 84.7 years for men and 80.1 for women, Italy allocates just 4.1 per cent of total health expenditure for prophylaxis taking its place among the last places in Europe. «We are the Cinderella of the world – admits Walter Ricciardi, Director of Osservasalute and President of the National Institute of health – the last country to invest in prophylaxis starting with vaccinations». Chapter public health spending per capita: steady but much lower than in other countries. In 2014 Italy spent 1817 euros each, in line with the previous year. A value that places Italy among the countries that spend less: Canada has in fact spent 100% percent more, Germany 68% and Finland 35%. Another critical point is the vaccine covers: in particular the flu shot for over 65, dropped from 2003 to 2015 from 63.4 to 49 percent. In the end a very important issue, underlined by Italian Health Minister, Beatrice Lorenzin “Italy is the fifth country in the world for scientific publications and the 12th for investments in biomedical research, but in spite of such production, there are still a few searches that are developed into real opportunities as startups or patents».