Romania Ministry of Health seeks 8.2 billion lei budget increase

The Romanian Ministry of Health and the National Health Insurance House are requesting a budget increase of over 8.2 billion lei to cover healthcare system expenditures through the end of 2026.

A significant portion of the requested funds, approximately 6.873 billion lei, is intended for the National Unique Social Health Insurance Fund. This includes 2.585 billion lei to balance the fund and 4.288 billion lei to cover deficits generated by medical leave and social health insurance indemnities.

The ministry highlighted an alarming situation regarding public ambulance services, which face an estimated deficit of 168 million lei for salary payments in November and December. For 2026, the allocated budget for personnel expenses in ambulance services was 1.81 billion lei, with 1.639 billion lei already spent in the first ten months, leaving insufficient funds for the remainder of the year.