Istat, the crisis also weighed on health - Reuters

11% of Italian waiver of medical care. It should always be less than the dentist,
between 2005 and 2012 increased appointments with psychiatrists and geriatricians

health of Italians increasingly affected by the economic crisis: in 2012, 11% of the population (6 million people) has declared that it has given up at least one health service delivered by the NHS, even though it considers need it. Over one in two people renunciation for economic reasons, and about one in three for reasons of supply. This is what emerges from the preliminary estimates of the survey “Health conditions and use of health services” conducted by Istat, and realized with the support of the Ministry of Health and the Regions.

examining the combination of services which should be provided by the Public Health Service, 9% of the population said they had given up at least one payment between investigations specialist, specialist medical examinations (excluding dental) or surgery, while considering I need it. If these accumulate those who said they had refused to buy drugs, the share reaches 11, 1% of the population. Compared to these waivers, 6.2% indicated financial reasons, 4% supply problems (waiting lists are too long or inconvenient times for the appointment or difficulty reaching the structure) and the 1, 1% other reasons such as work or family commitments, or otherwise. They are more often women to give up (13.2% versus 9% in men), and this difference is accentuated in the class 45-64 years, whose resignation from the 17.9% of women compared to 12.7% of men. The proportion of women 45 to 64 years age classes-renunciation rises to 22.3% in the South and 26.5% in the Islands.

The largest proportion of people who renounces at least one of the services in question is found among the unemployed (21.4%). In comparing anyone who enjoys good or adequate financial resources and who judges them scarce or insufficient, the proportion of dropouts from 6.8% to 17.6%. In the North-West, the ratio is almost one in three (rising from 4.5% to 13.3%). In the South and in the Islands even those who declare good economic condition waived in 9.3% of cases compared with 4.5% in the North West and 5.7% in the Northeast. Considering the reason for the waiver with respect to land, the proportion of those who appear to be relevant waiver for economic reasons in the South (9.2%) and Islands (9.5%), while the average is 6.2%. At the center instead is higher than the national average waivers for problems related to the offer (the inconvenience of waiting lists and times or to property) (5.3% vs. 4%). The percentages of renunciation rising to 26.3% among those who state they feel bad or very bad, to 18.4% among those with a serious chronic disease, 23.3% among multicronici, all conditions that exposing a greater need assistance will likely offer even greater risk of treatment dropout.

Into the second half of 2012, compared to the same period in 2005, the health care consumption were higher for medical visits, diagnostic testing and stable with a slight decrease in hospital admissions. If the figure increases overall consumption of specialist visits, in detail you notice an increase in visits and geriatric psychology, compared to those dental decreasing, also for economic reasons. The greatest increase compared to 2005, whereas the total volume of specialist visits, registers for geriatric visits (+63.6%), the psychiatric-psychological (54.4%) and neurological (48.1% ), while reducing dental visits (-23.1%), and slightly visits dietary (-9%). It should be noted that 14.3% of people aged 14 and over who gave up a dental visit in the last year states that it was still needing one: among these, 85% did so for economic reasons. Growth in the health care payment in full for the investigations: the share rose from 21.0% to 24.9% for specialist investigations, 8, 1% to 14.1% for blood tests. These percentages are higher in the central and southern regions, where there is also the greatest increase compared to 2005.