Italy is ageing, who will take care of it?

Abstract

Italians are getting older and demand more and more attention on medical care. However, the need to curb public spending calls for a radical reorganisation of the Italian healthcare system. A study of the data available from the Istat - HFA (Health For All) data set reveals a general picture where it seems that supply is struggling to meet demand, pushing families towards a system of private care. A spatio-temporal regression model is presented to interpret the phenomenon and better understand the dynamics of the last two decades and better chart the future of our healthcare system. The resulting picture is that of a nation with different care needs per geographical area. The alpine areas and Rome Capital are the most important.