The Health and Well-Being Committee aims to contribute to the development of a sustainable, solidary, high-quality, and accessible healthcare system that puts the individual or the patient at the center.
Key areas of the Committee’s work
A Healthy Society as the Foundation for Slovenia’s Socio-Economic Development
A healthy society represents one of the key investments in the long-term socio-economic development of Slovenia. To achieve a sustainable, fair, high-quality, and accessible healthcare system, the strategic promotion and implementation of innovation are also essential. Healthcare is a long-term investment in economic growth and social welfare, not merely a cost.
Like many countries with a universal healthcare system, Slovenia also faces complex challenges. Notable among these are the aging population, the rise in chronic diseases, increasing healthcare costs, slower economic growth, as well as waiting lists and limited patient access to healthcare services and innovative treatment methods. Existing models of financing and organizing healthcare systems are increasingly proving to be inefficient, as they do not ensure optimal outcomes for patients nor allow for the efficient use of available resources.
A resilient and efficient healthcare system is a key prerequisite for a competitive and productive society and economy. It has been proven that investments in healthcare innovations, from prevention and early disease detection to advanced therapies, have measurable social and economic benefits. These are reflected in higher workforce productivity, a reduction in sick leave, and, in the long term, a higher level of GDP. Conversely, delays in access to modern healthcare services lead to higher costs for the state and the economy in the long run, as sick leave increases, work capacity and quality of life decrease, and premature exits from the labor market occur.
To effectively face these challenges, the Health and Well-Being Committee advocates for a comprehensive and multifaceted approach that builds on the existing strengths of the system and directs it toward long-term stability and success.
Key measures include the following areas:
- Value-based healthcare focused on patient outcomes;
- Improved access to early disease detection, diagnostics, and advanced therapies;
- Development of data-driven healthcare using digital technologies to improve processes;
- Maintaining high-quality healthcare services through public-private partnerships;
- Strengthening the management and optimal utilization of capacities in public healthcare institutions;
- Ensuring sustainable financing of the healthcare system and systematic measurement of outcomes;
- Promoting a culture of health and empowering individuals to actively care for their own health.
Value-Based Healthcare Focused on Patient Outcomes
Value-based healthcare (VBHC) is based on achieving health outcomes that truly matter to patients throughout the entire care cycle, from diagnosis and treatment to rehabilitation. The fundamental goal of this approach is to create the maximum possible value for the patient. Instead of the system focusing primarily on the volume of services provided (number of procedures, consultations, or hospitalizations), it prioritizes achieving the best health outcomes through the rational use of resources.
The key conditions for implementing this model are the systematic collection, integration, and analysis of data, including patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and clinical data. Such an approach enables the gradual introduction of financing models based on the treatment results achieved, rather than just the volume of services performed. At the same time, it encourages standardized monitoring of the quality and safety of healthcare, which represents the foundation for greater system efficiency, better patient support, and the long-term development of the healthcare system.
Slovenia has already taken its first steps in this field by introducing performance and quality indicators. The PROMs project under the patronage of the Ministry of Health also represents significant progress, but these approaches are not yet fully integrated into daily clinical practice. For the true implementation of a value-oriented model, it is essential that provider performance data and treatment result analyses are systematically processed and become accessible to all key stakeholders. Data transparency is a prerequisite for responsible decision-making by healthcare providers, patients, policymakers, and payers.
The comprehensive introduction of the VBHC model therefore represents a significant opportunity to increase efficiency, enhance system sustainability, and improve long-term treatment outcomes in Slovenia.
Improving Access to Early Detection, Diagnostics, and Advanced Therapies
Improving health outcomes and, where possible, preventing disease progression is directly linked to timely detection, accurate diagnostics, and effective treatment. Special attention must be paid to ensuring the accessibility of advanced medicines and modern therapeutic approaches.
In this area, Slovenia lags behind many European countries. Only about half of the medicines approved at the European Union (EU) level in the last three years are actually available to Slovenian patients. Although this share is slightly above the EU average according to the W.A.I.T. (Waiting to Access Innovative Therapies) indicator, it is significantly lower than in Germany, where accessibility is nearly 96%. Furthermore, the process for listing a new medicine in Slovenia takes an average of 610 days, which exceeds the European average, leaving us significantly behind faster systems.
Timely access to innovative and more effective therapies, including improved methods of drug administration, is key to effective disease management, reducing sick leave, and decreasing the broader social and economic burdens of poor health.
Therefore, we advocate for the development of a healthcare ecosystem in which all key stakeholders actively participate in:
- Strengthening early detection programs and diagnostic capacities;
- Removing administrative barriers in conducting clinical trials and registeringadvanced therapies;
- Ensuring fast, transparent, and predictable patient access to innovative treatments.
Such systemic changes are necessary to improve health outcomes for patients whilesimultaneously strengthening Slovenia’s long-term economic resilience.
Data-Driven Healthcare and Process Optimization Using Digital Technologies
A healthcare system based on the systematic use of data and modern digital solutions brings significant benefits to all stakeholders and enables:
- Greater accessibility and higher quality healthcare;
- More efficient resource management and cost reduction;
- Greater transparency and better data security and protection;
- Faster and more accurate diagnostics and the development of personalized treatment approaches.
Greater Accessibility and Quality of Healthcare
Digitalization improves communication between patients and healthcare professionals and simplifies access to services. The development of telemedicine and other digital tools enables faster treatment, reduces administrative barriers, and increases the responsiveness of the system, especially for patients from remote or less accessible areas.
More Efficient Resource Management and Cost Reduction
Process optimization through the use of digital solutions reduces the time spent on manual data entry and administrative tasks. Integrated information systems enable better inventory management, more effective patient monitoring, and higher-quality planning of work and capacities. With centralized and interoperable data storage in place, healthcare professionals have access to relevant information throughout the patient’s entire care pathway. This reduces service duplication, improves coordination, and saves valuable time.
Data Protection and Security
Modern electronic systems reduce the risk of the loss or misuse of documentation, and enable the controlled and secure use of health data in accordance with personal data protection legislation. Appropriate digital infrastructure is the foundation of patient trust and system stability.
Faster Diagnostics and Personalized Treatment Approaches
Properly collected, integrated, and analyzed health data are the foundation for developing tailored treatment pathways and supporting faster and more accurate diagnostics. At the same time, they allow patients to play a more active role in their care, as they can possess real-time information about their health status and response to therapy.
Today, digital technologies are no longer just a development opportunity, but a necessary condition for the comprehensive transformation of the Slovenian healthcare system. Strengthening data-driven decision-making, developing telemedicine, and introducing pilot projects, such as digital hospital models, can make the healthcare system more transparent, flexible, efficient, and accessible.
This represents a key step toward long-term sustainable and modern healthcare.
Maintaining Healthcare Quality Through Meaningful Public-Private Partnerships
Amid the current discussions on the Health Services Act, it is crucial to emphasize that we support a public healthcare system that has significant social and economic impacts. Effective system management requires moving beyond the simplified division between public and private, and instead focusing on sustainable financing models and uniform, high-quality standards.
Public healthcare is not defined by the ownership of infrastructure, but by the universality and solidarity of its financing. The public network must function as a connected ecosystem in which public institutions and private concessionaires operate under the same clinical standards and within a uniform framework for protecting patient rights. The key performance criterion must be the value the system creates for the patient in terms of quality, accessibility, and timeliness of care, regardless of the provider’s legal form.
In order to achieve the long-term sustainability of the system, a structural adjustment of the financing model of the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia (Zavod za zdravstveno zavarovanje Slovenije, ZZZS) is also required. Payment models must reflect realistic cost structures, including the actual prices of medical materials and labor on the European market, and consider the efficiency and performance of providers.
Pricing systems must be carefully adapted to encourage the introduction of modern organizational and professional approaches. They should be aligned with average efficiency criteria, allowing efficient providers to develop and reinvest, while creating clear incentives for modernization and business efficiency improvements in less successful organizations. In doing so, the quality of health outcomes must also be systematically taken into account.
To prevent further brain drain from state healthcare institutions, a reform of rigid and outdated salary systems is essential. Following the failed attempt to limit dual practice in 2025, focus should be directed toward strengthening the competitiveness of state healthcare institutions as employers. Greater flexibility in remuneration would allow for the introduction of incentives linked to performance and results, comparable to private sector practices, and contribute to retaining top experts within the public system.
Strengthening the Management and Capacity of Public Institutions
Existing legal and organizational frameworks often excessively restrict public healthcare institutions and diminish their ability to implement the modern management models and innovations necessary to ensure optimal patient care.
The modernization of the system calls for structural reforms that provide healthcare management with greater autonomy, coupled with the introduction of expert supervisory bodies with clearly defined mandates and accountability. This transition relies on highly skilled leadership capable of driving digital transformation and executing strategic changes.
Organizational excellence is built on transparency and data-driven decision-making. The implementation of resilient quality assurance systems and systematic cost monitoring would enable benchmarking of performance, improve efficiency, and enhance adaptation to the expectations of patients and payers. Such practices, which are already standard in many European healthcare systems, represent the foundation for deliberate and fact-based decision-making at the national level.
Sustainable development also requires increased investment in human capital. Work organization must be optimized through modern leadership training and the development of management competencies, while simultaneously reforming remuneration systems to encourage efficiency, quality, and measurable results.
By aligning incentives with clearly defined performance goals, the healthcare system can become more responsive, efficient, and resilient, ensuring a high level of solidary and quality care for all patients.
Sustainable Healthcare Financing and Measuring Impact
Reforming the financing of the Slovenian public healthcare system is an urgent priority, directly linked to the accessibility of care and the long-term sustainability of the system. The amendment to the Healthcare and Health Insurance Act (ZZVZZ-T), which replaced voluntary complementary health insurance with a mandatory health contribution, did not represent a comprehensive structural reform of healthcare financing.
In 2024, Slovenia allocated 9.9% of its GDP to healthcare, which is comparable to the EU average and reflects a fiscal commitment to the sector. However, due to a lower absolute level of GDP, per capita expenditure remains below the EU and OECD averages. This creates challenges in terms of efficiency, resource allocation, and system management.
While compulsory health insurance covers a wide range of services, co-payments and additional coverage needs persist. Given demographic trends, the rising burden of chronic and lifestyle-related diseases, and rapid technological progress, further growth in healthcare spending is expected.
Insufficient prevention and poor disease management increase direct healthcare costs and indirect economic losses related to sick leave, reduced productivity, the increased burden of informal care, early retirement, and premature mortality. Replacing complementary insurance with a mandatory contribution is not enough, and broader systemic financing reform is required.
We support a discussion on diversifying funding sources to supplement public funds. One option is to consider differentiating rights within multiple “baskets of rights” financed through various mechanisms:
- A basic basket, financed by compulsory health insurance;
- An additional basket, financed through voluntary insurance schemes;
- A complementary basket, supported by the state budget.
Decisions on categorizing services into specific baskets must be based on credible macroeconomic analyses and assessments of long-term financial sustainability.
The deliberate introduction of non-tax supplementary funding sources can preserve the principle of solidarity while increasing system resilience. Without reforms, there is a risk of further growth in out-of-pocket payments, which could lead to the gradual emergence of a parallel system where access is increasingly determined by an individual’s financial capacity.
We also advocate for the systematic use of impact measurement methodologies in healthcare financing. Return on Investment (ROI) analyses must consider broader socio-economic benefits, such as increased labor activity and population productivity, in addition to direct savings in the healthcare budget. As one of the largest and most strategically important sectors in the country, healthcare should not be treated merely as a cost, but as a long-term investment in social and economic development.
Furthermore, we encourage discussion on public-private partnerships as a supplementary instrument for sustainable healthcare investment. Such models can enable the joint financing of modern infrastructure and advanced medical equipment through long-term cooperation in planning, construction, financing, and management. International experience shows that projects are successful where risks are appropriately shared and management frameworks are clear.
Modern healthcare increasingly demands interdisciplinary knowledge. Major innovations rely not only on clinical excellence but also on competencies in investment management, procurement processes, and operational efficiency. These capacities are often limited within traditional state structures. Carefully designed public-private cooperation models can therefore represent an effective way to link medical expertise with advanced managerial and financial capacities, while maintaining public oversight and the principle of solidarity.
Promoting a Culture of Health and Individual Empowerment
Promoting a culture of health and strengthening individual responsibility for one’s own health and well-being are key prerequisites for a long-term successful and stable society. Actively involving the population in self-care, in close cooperation with public health prevention programs, is one of the most effective ways to reduce premature mortality. In the EU, a significant share of premature deaths is still linked to insufficient or delayed prevention.
Slovenia is already proving that excellent results can be achieved in this field. The national screening programs Svit, Zora, and Dora represent examples of best practice that successfully link systemically organized prevention with active individual involvement. By providing accessible and high-quality screening for colorectal, cervical, and breast cancer, Slovenia has established an effective model for early disease detection. These programs serve as an important starting point for the transition from a passive individual role to active participation in healthcare decisions.
However, establishing a culture of health also requires a balanced relationship between individual responsibility and systemic support. One of the current challenges is the debate over extending the period of employer-covered sick leave to 30 days. Such proposals often face objections from within the business community, as they may represent an additional financial burden.
Therefore, it is crucial to establish a constructive dialogue between the state, employers, and citizens. The goal must be to find solutions that promote a responsible attitude toward health while maintaining the stability and competitiveness of the economy.
An important supplementary approach is the principle of harm reduction, which is already used in many EU countries to manage non-communicable chronic diseases related to lifestyle, such as diabetes, smoking, and excessive sun exposure. Rather than relying solely on absolute prohibitions, this approach encourages the use of scientifically based alternatives and gradual behavioral changes that reduce health risks.
By linking successful screening programs with pragmatic harm reduction strategies, Slovenia can further strengthen societal resilience and raise the level of health awareness.
Slovenia can establish a resilient, sustainable, and patient-centered healthcare system if it treats healthcare costs as a strategic socio-economic investment, systematically promotes innovation, implements thoughtful structural reforms, and strengthens individual responsibility for health.
Such an approach would enable high-quality, accessible, and solidary healthcare for all citizens, contributing to a healthier, more productive, and long-term successful society.
Healthcare in Critical Situations
The expectations of all stakeholders in healthcare – patients, service providers, and payers alike – are justifiably ever greater.
Attention must not be focused only on the number of services provided but also on their efficiency and quality and the satisfaction of patients and those employed in healthcare. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how important it is to transform how healthcare works.This situation has shown the good will and devotion of all medical staff, and at the same time uncovered procedural bottlenecks that must be effectively overcome so as to support everyone: doctors, staff and patients. It is important that the healthcare system open up to new organizational approaches, the so-called “harm reduction” approaches, and the introduction of innovations and digital tools, which increase the accessibility and efficiency of diagnostics and treatment.
The Future of Medicine is Now
Introducing Innovations in Healthcare
When introducing innovations and innovative operational models (HTA) we recommend forming an independent group of experts to act independently, yet in agreement with Slovenia’s Ministry of Health, the Slovenian Society for Medical Informatics (SDMI), and the Agency for Medicinal Products and Medical Devices of the Republic of Slovenia, linking with the international network of HTA agencies.
Digitalization of Healthcare
The COVID-19 situation has shown the significance of enabling patients to access information about their health (e.g. via mobile devices) with pertinent advice for a quicker recovery, control, and general accessibility. Digital information technologies ensure increased efficiency and quality with better integration of all sources of patient treatment and care.
They make “e-health” possible, including online information, illness management, remote monitoring, and telemedicine, all of which increase the scope of limited healthcare sources and knowledge.With the help of artificial intelligence, the diagnostics and subsequently treatment are of a higher quality and data-driven, while doctors’ work is more efficient. The faster and safer handling of patients creates better capacities due to more efficient processes, and control over costs is maintained. Telemedicine is an important complementary system, which enables access to suitable and timely information for ensuring optimal care.
Personalized Medicine
Personalized medicine is the concept of the right form of care for the right patient at the right time. This concept builds on a paradigm that distances itself from an approach that assumes that one form of treatment suits everyone. Traditionally, personalized medicine refers to diagnostic methods used to recognize the characteristics of an illness. It also means the target medicines that aim directly at the changes recognized at the level of an individual’s molecular characteristics, and in this way ensure better results for the individual patient. Through the collection, advanced analysis, and linking of health data, and the development of digital tools that connect the patient and the doctor, we enable an optimal choice of treatment for the individual, the monitoring of an individual’s illness and the adaptation of treatment to achieve optimal results.
Committee members
Who are the members of the Committee?
See the full list of Committee members.
Join the AmCham Health and Wellbeing Committee
For all questions related to the Committee’s work, you can turn to our Committee coordinator Vida Dolenc Pogačnik, our COO and International Cooperation Director.
Vida Dolenc Pogačnik
COO and International Cooperation Director