Italy’s Healthcare in Crisis: A Deep Dive into the SSN’s Struggles
Five years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Italy’s public healthcare system, the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale (SSN), is facing a profound crisis. A recent study published in *The Lancet Regional Health Europe* highlights severe structural and organizational flaws that undermine the system’s equity and sustainability. While acknowledging the SSN’s historical strengths, the authors argue that the pandemic amplified pre-existing fragilities, making radical reforms imperative to ensure accessible and effective care for all Italians.
Compounding these issues, the OECD’s “Health at a Glance 2025” report reveals that Italy’s healthcare spending is below average. Despite having one of the highest life expectancies globally, Italy spends only $5,164 per capita on health, compared to the OECD average of $5,000. This underinvestment, coupled with chronic underfunding and policy choices, has led to severe staff shortages, particularly among nurses. The Gimbe Foundation’s recent report warns of a dangerous imbalance: an oversupply of doctors but a dramatic lack of nurses, creating structural vulnerabilities that affect patient care and system resilience.
The consequences are stark and far-reaching. Emergency room overcrowding, long waiting lists for essential procedures, and regional disparities in care quality have become the norm. The pandemic exposed these weaknesses, but the response has been insufficient. As part of a four-part dossier, this analysis delves into the causes, effects, and responsibilities behind the SSN’s gradual dismantling, highlighting the social, economic, and territorial impacts. The crisis is not just a matter of budgets; it is a threat to the fundamental right to health, demanding urgent attention and decisive action from policymakers to rebuild trust and ensure the system’s survival for future generations.
Shimanta Das 
