On 1 March, at the Riga Castle, President of Latvia Egils Levits met with Health Minister Līga Meņģelsone and professional healthcare associations – Latvian Medical Association (LMA), Latvian Junior Doctors Association (LJDA), Family Doctors Association of Latvia (FDAL) and Latvian Nurses Association (LNA). Meeting focused on healthcare funding.
Representatives of healthcare associations presented their vision of Latvia’s healthcare system challenges that have aggravated over the years and reached a braking point. President of Latvia pointed out that, on top of additional funding, system needs reforms that will both strengthen the capacity of healthcare professionals in the long run and improve public health in Latvia.
‘Our healthcare system must be transparent, rationally-built and lean. All stakeholders, including healthcare system actors, understand the necessity to reform the sector. We must gradually, yet responsibly and decisively raise healthcare funding because health is a priority for everyone and society as a whole,’ Egils Levits underlined.
Meeting also focused on the importance of developing telemedicine, military healthcare and civilian protection.
President Levits thanked healthcare associations for high level of dedication to advocating for the development of national healthcare system and work of all Latvian healthcare professionals, thus contributing to better healthcare for Latvian population.
President of Latvia met with the following leaders of healthcare organisations: Ilze Aizsilniece, President of LMA, Professor Viesturs Boka, LMA Board Member, Evija Ansonska, LMA Communications Director, Artūrs Šilovs, Chairman of the Board of LJDA, Jānis Vētra, Member of the Board at LJDA and LMA, Dita Raiska, President of LNA, Inese Budzila, Member of the Board of LNA, and Sarmīte Veide, President of FDAL.
