This analysis serves to understand the importance of the general health for political parties seeking to govern the country; to understand if there are programs, the envisaged development platforms, mission and strategy and if the presented programs are feasible or if proposals for intervention and development of the health system will remain on paper within the electoral promises.
From these six political parties, it turns out that only four have published on the official website the political program 2021-2025, respectively the Democratic Party, the Socialist Movement for Integration, the Movement for Change and the Hashtag Initiative. These four parties have included voices of health programs. The Socialist Party has presented its 4-year program at a conference, but it is not available on the party's official website. Health sector is mentioned, but not detailed.
Political parties have given several promises, but they also have common points, such as reforming the healthcare system. Four political parties (Socialist Party, Democratic Party, Social Movement for Integration and Hashtag Initiative) foresee remodeling health public funding. In the public appearances for the health program, the four parties talk about hospital autonomy, about the increase of the salaries of the medical staff, about the increase of the quality of the medical service for the patient.
Findings of the report:
• Healthcare system is part of the political programs of five parties from six monitored as Democratic Conviction has not mentioned health sector in their program in their official website.
• The healthcare program full main points have been published only by four political parties: Democratic Party, Socialist Movement for Integration, Hashtag Initiative and Movement for Change. Socialist Party has done a fragmented presentation in the main conference to present their platform and in different meetings.
• Five political parties involved in the analysis (apart from Democratic Conviction) have in common hospital autonomy.
• The three major political parties (Socialist Party, Democratic Party and Socialist Movement for Integration) seem to make health a priority of their political programs, focusing on three main pillars: reorganizing the healthcare system, the quality of medicines and investing in public health. In general, these plans are unclear as to how they will achieve the healthcare reform.
• In the three new parties, only Hashtag Initiative and Movement for Change have a public program and have published healthcare priorities in particular
• None of the political parties offers a national action strategy to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic situation which is expected to continue without a set deadline.
• Socialist Party has included in its program the projects that are foreseen to be implemented in the midterm draft-budgets
• All parties promise reforms in the healthcare system, but in no case is there an increase in funding for health, at least as much as the percentage of GDP of the region.
• There are envisaged investments in public health and the development of primary healthcare but it is not foreseen the creation of registers for the non communicable diseases and a must for statistic to better plan the future of health system (and as agreed by the European Health Ministers previously, Albania included).
Some recommendations:
1. The political platforms for the next 4-year 2021-2025 should be published and transparent on the official website of each party.
2. Each point of the health program must have the development strategy; how the reform will be achieved, which legal and financial components will be used, how the medical staff will be motivated, how the number of medical professionals will increase, professionals specialized in covering the population with medical service at the national level, etc.
3. Political programs and in particular the healthcare program should take in consideration even the people with disabilities and provide the most appropriate means of communication for them. The official websites of political parties should make accessible reading programs for people in need of capitalization or contrast, as well as sign language for the people with hearing problems. Access to information published on official websites should enable people with disabilities to be informed and participate in political and public life.
4. All main issues of the health programs should be accompanied by a financial bill to understand whether budget constraints have been foreseen and how feasible these reforms may be. For example, during elections politicians announce ambitious healthcare policies that are not financially or administratively feasible (in the short or medium term).
5. Political parties should use the media to make public their healthcare program, arguing how all stakeholders are affected, the timelines and the manner of realization of each point.