The National Health Fund budget for 2026 adopted by the Public Finance Committee. "These numbers won't stack up"
- The Sejm Health Committee adopted the draft financial plan of the National Health Fund for 2026
- Total expenditure on healthcare services will amount to PLN 201.2 billion
- This will be another year in which revenues from health insurance contributions will be much lower than necessary expenses. The National Health Fund will receive PLN 26 billion in subsidies from the state budget
- According to opposition MPs and experts, this is too little to talk about a stable healthcare system. - These numbers won't stack up - it was said from the floor
- We are forecasting based on currently known revenues and costs - replied Deputy Minister of Health Wojciech Konieczny, not ruling out the need for later changes to the plan
MP Zbigniew Kuźmiuk (PiS) asked whether the 9.9% increase in NFZ revenues would be enough to cover the dynamically growing costs. In turn, Adrian Zandberg (Razem) emphasized that this plan is far below the needs of a stable system and asked why the Ministry of Health is signing up to a plan "which gradually leads to the privatization of health care" .
In response, Deputy Minister Konieczny admitted that the ministry was not sure whether this increase in revenue would be sufficient.
- We are starting work on this plan, we know some assumptions, we do not know others. We do not know the recommendations of AOTMiT regarding financing next year's indexation of minimum wages of healthcare workers, or other variables that may appear during the year. We are forecasting based on currently known revenues and costs - said Konieczny, adding that he does not rule out the need for later changes to the plan.
He explained that the ministry does not sign any privatization plans. - There is no such intention and Minister Leszczyna has repeatedly mentioned that it is not her intention to privatize health care - said the deputy minister.
MP Zandberg pointed out that the PLN 26 billion subsidy is too little and will be used up - just like this year - in the first half of the year, which will cause problems with the implementation of benefits in the second half of the year. He also asked how the amount was calculated at this level. There was no answer.
- These numbers will not add up - emphasized MP Zandberg.
In the vote, 19 MPs supported the adoption of the plan, 10 were against, and no one abstained. On July 9, the plan will be considered by the Health Committee.
The planned total revenues of the National Health Fund are to increase by 9.9 percent compared to the revenues specified in the financial plan for 2025. They will reach PLN 217.3 billion .
Of this, revenues from health insurance contributions will amount to PLN 184.3 billion (PLN 179.8 billion ZUS and PLN 4.5 billion KRUS), with PLN 173.1 billion in 2025 (PLN 168.8 billion and PLN 4.3 billion, respectively).
The entity subsidy from the state budget will amount to PLN 26 billion . It will be almost PLN 8 billion higher than assumed in the original plan for 2025 (it was PLN 18.3 billion). Let us recall, however, that in the first months of this year it was increased and at the end of June it amounted to PLN 23.4 billion. It will probably not end at this amount this year.
Expenditures on healthcare services – i.e. how much the National Health Fund spends on treatment – constitute 92.55% of the fund's costs specified in the draft financial plan for 2026.
They are planned at the level of PLN 201.2 billion (PLN 183.6 billion in 2025, an increase of 9.6%), including:
- PLN 100.1 billion - hospital treatment (PLN 90.1 billion in 2025),
- PLN 22.8 billion - primary health care (PLN 19.6 billion in 2025),
- PLN 17.4 billion - outpatient specialist care (PLN 15.9 billion in 2025).
The costs of free medicines for children and seniors 65+ are planned at PLN 3.5 billion (PLN 2.9 billion in 2025), and for pregnant women PLN 40.6 million (PLN 27.4 million in 2025).
The total reimbursement budget was set at PLN 30.7 billion .
PLN 5.5 billion has been planned for the implementation of the tasks of medical rescue teams (PLN 4.8 billion planned for 2025).
Administrative costs will amount to PLN 1.7 billion - including remuneration of PLN 804 million , which constitutes 46.51% of administrative costs and 0.37% of total costs of the National Health Fund.
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