Reports to Parliament on health: delays of up to 7.5 years for palliative care

They should be the foundation of healthcare planning; they monitor the effects of regulations, identify emerging priorities, and help prevent decisions from being merely the result of fads or external pressures. Their value is greatest if they are timely and genuinely discussed in institutional settings. We're talking about information, data, and evidence contained in the multiple reports, dossiers, and platforms that must be maintained and published, by law, by the Ministry of Health and/or its supervised entities.

While they risk becoming formal, bureaucratic obligations, far from reality, and implemented behind the timelines set by law, they provide valuable information to the state's representative body, Parliament, which proposes and approves laws and oversees the government's actions. To do so, it's obvious, there's a need for constant, up-to-date information to monitor the implementation of enacted laws. Furthermore, they are of interest to citizens for transparency and accountability. It's no coincidence that for laws deemed important, Parliament itself has mandated that the Minister of Health—with a defined frequency—send updates on the progress of implementing the provisions themselves.

In preparation for the summer recess, the Health Equity Observatory has compiled the timelines for pending reports to Parliament, along with their length of time. It has selected some that address general aspects of the NHS; organization, accessibility, equity and humanization; pathologies and procedures. It recognizes that the final four months of 2025 are key dates for making decisions, starting with the crucial Budget Law, and that the data provided could prove useful.

"If we want to ensure legislation that addresses, in a timely and effective manner, the right to health and the proper functioning of the National Health Service," says Tonino Aceti , president of Salutequità, "it is essential to be able to count on the timely production and publication of data, information, and evidence. All of this is essential to guaranteeing high-quality public policies and legislation, starting with the announced new National Health Plan and the upcoming Budget Law, but also to effectively achieve transparency and accountability in our Public Health Service."

In pole position, with over seven years of information gaps for Parliament (and citizens), just as the Chambers are debating the end-of-life law, is the Report on the Implementation of Law 38/2010, "Provisions to Guarantee Access to Palliative Care and Pain Management." The last report was submitted in January 2019 (the law requires annual submission by December 31st) and covers the 2015-2017 period. Yet, it is a central theme for the humanization of care, attention to the quality of life of patients and their families, and the dignity of life and the end of life. Thanks to this work, we should have a clear picture of the evidence on the prescription and use of medications, particularly opioid analgesics; on research activities; and on the status of implementation and development of palliative care networks, including pediatric ones, and pain management in terms of functioning, performance, outcomes, and economic aspects.