7.6% of population gives up on healthcare

(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 29 - Some 7.6% of the Italian population gave up on healthcare treatment last year because they couldn't afford it, waiting lists were too long, or services were too far away, the National Council for the Economy and Labour (CNEL) said Sunday.
    In 2023, approximately 4.5 million people gave up on healthcare services due to economic problems, supply problems (long waiting lists) or difficulty reaching the places where the service is provided. This is 7.6% of the Italian population, compared to 7% in 2022 and 6.3% in 2019, the pre-pandemic year.
    "There has been a worsening trend, regardless of the exceptionality of 2021, when the consequences linked to Covid-19 caused the value to increase up to 11%", said the CNEL.
    The data highlight that the age group with the highest number of renunciations is between 55 and 59 years old (with 11.1%), while the region with the worst data is Sardinia (13.7%), followed by Lazio (10.5%). (ANSA).