The economic crisis, which has plunged a large part of the population into poverty, has also had a devastating impact on the healthcare sector. Hospitals are underfunded, medicines are in short supply, and access to healthcare has become a major challenge for many Lebanese.
Lebanon, which once had a relatively well-developed healthcare system, now finds itself on the brink of health collapse.
Before the crisis, the Lebanese healthcare system was distinguished by its dynamism and relative quality, underpinned by a mix of public and private funding. The country had many well-trained hospitals, clinics and doctors, able to meet the needs of the population and attract foreign patients for “medical tourism”. However, health financing in Lebanon relied heavily on private funds, with public spending in this sector historically low. In 2018, public spending on healthcare represented just 7% of the state budget, well below the regional average. This low level of public funding exposed the sector to the effects of the economic crisis that began in 2019.
The French-language Lebanese news website Newsdesk Libnanews focuses on Lebanon’s health system, severely tested by the economic crisis.
