The laboratory concession occupies 10.4% of the budget of QSUT/ 3 times more than the international average

2024-01-24 07:23:00, Denoncim CNA

The laboratory concession occupies 10.4% of the budget of QSUT/ 3 times more

A few days ago, the Council of Ministers approved the budget for the hospital service this year.

The total fund for public hospitals for 2024 is ALL 32.2 billion, while the budget for QSUT (Mother Teresa Hospital Center) is ALL 7.8 billion. According to official data, 820 million Lek, or about 10.4% of the annual budget of the largest hospital in our country, will be spent on the laboratory concession in the budget of the State Hospital for this year.

The cost of the laboratory service at QSUT is more than three times the cost of this service in international hospitals.

The study "Hospital Cost Structure and the implications on Cost Management During COVID-19" that obtained cost information for 3521 private hospitals showed that the laboratory service occupied 3.8% of the total cost.

“The single largest item is administrative and general costs (21.4% of all operating costs). Costs of eight patient care services, operating room (8.4%), laboratory (3.8%), diagnostic radiology (2.7%), general routine hospital care (9.1%), intensive care unit (2.2%), ambulatory clinic (4.2%), emergency room (3.9%)," the study states.

As can be seen from the data comparison, the concessions have significantly deformed the cost structure in our hospitals, but especially in QSUT. The share of laboratory service expenses at the "Mother Teresa" Hospital Center is 3.2 times higher than the international average.

The laboratory concession occupies 10.4% of the budget of QSUT/ 3 times more

The cost structure worsens even more if the sterilization concession is studied. In Albania, there is no official data or study on the distribution of costs during an operation, but in most cases cleaning and sterilizing the room costs more than the work of a surgeon in the public system.

The hierarchy of costs in the country's public hospitals has been severely damaged by the PPP concessions, which are already under investigation and there are even arrests due to the abuses found.

As can be seen from the official data in the government's decision, QSUT and the regional hospital of Fier face high costs of laboratory services in relation to the general budget they have this year.

Moreover, the value of the PPP contract of the laboratory is increasing year after year due to poor forecasts. The lack of payments for the concession is associated with the limitation of the laboratory service.

The value of the contract is 13 billion ALL, or about 106 million euros, and its term ends in 2028. But the payments for this concession have increased year after year. From ALL 1.1 billion that was paid from the budget in 2021, the amount increased to ALL 1.85 billion in 2024./ Monitor.al