Interregional Cooperation
for a trans-European Electronic Health Cards Strategy

INCO-HEALTH Partners

Region of Veneto
Department of Health and Social Finances
Palazzo Molin San Polo, 2514
30125 – Venice
Italy

www.regione.veneto.it

Coordinator:
Fabio Perina
fabio.perina@inco-health.org

Veneto is situated in the north-east of Italy and is divided into seven provinces from the Lake of Garda to the Dolomites. It covers 18,380 square km and has about 4.4 million inhabitants that live in 580 cities. About 71% of the population live in small towns with less than 30,000
inhabitants and the average population density is 244.2 per square km. Veneto is one of the Italian regions with a positive growth rate (0,5%) due to a favourable social rate (5.7%) and an increasing population above the age of 65 (17.5%) that gives an elderly population index of 132.6%. The Regional Government is based in the city of Venice.
With reference to the health regional system, the Veneto region provide health and social services thanks to 21 local health units (called Aziende Sanitarie Local - ASLs or Unità Locali Socio Sanitarie – ULSS) and 2 Hospital Trusts.
The local health units manage GP contracts, polyclinic, Hospital and other health care and social services, health promotion and prevention of communicable diseases at local level. The health care system is funded mainly through taxation. There are mainly public Hospitals, funded through a predetermined budget and primary care physicians are paid mainly by capitation. The local health units as well as the Hospital trusts are managed by general directors appointed by the region.
The old Regional Community Health Plan (1996-1998) and the new, that has to be approved in these months, are a unique integrated planning tool, prescribing the line of development of the community health system for the next three years. An important point identifies lines of research on the basic of regional needs and the priorities that have been highlighted both within the European Union and elsewhere.