Horațiu Moldovan: One in five hospitalizations in Romania is medically unnecessary

The president of the National Health Insurance House (CNAS), Horațiu Moldovan, warned about waste in the Romanian healthcare system and emphasized the need to reform hospital financing, during the HEALTH EU SUMMIT 2025 organized by the Gândul platform.

According to Moldovan, around 20% of hospitalizations in Romania are not medically justified, as these cases could be treated through day hospitalization or outpatient care. “This situation consumes resources, puts pressure on the system, and reduces funding opportunities for truly priority medical areas,” he said.

He explained that the system needs real efficiency measures to eliminate unnecessary spending and direct public money toward areas that directly benefit patients. “Health is far too important to waste—just like public funds, where every leu wasted means a missed chance for patients,” Moldovan stressed.

One of the main goals mentioned is the introduction of performance-based hospital payments, which will also be linked to medical staff remuneration. “Paying hospitals based on performance, not inertia, is essential for system efficiency,” Moldovan noted, adding that this measure is already included in the law recently promulgated by President Nicușor Dan.

Moldovan also pointed out a significant imbalance between salaries and services: salary-related expenditures have reached 17 billion lei this year, while all Romanian hospitals bill only 16 billion lei in total services, which also include salary costs. “This disproportion can no longer continue,” he stated.

Regarding medical procurement, Moldovan announced CNAS’s intention to introduce centralized acquisitions for high-cost medical materials and devices, following the model used by the Department for Emergency Situations (DSU) and the Ministry of Health for emergency medicine supplies. “We have 14 billion lei allocated for national health programs, and we could treat at least 10% more patients if we purchased devices at current average costs instead of the wide price variations between hospitals,” he explained.

Moldovan concluded that his mandate as CNAS president focuses on efficiency of both financial and human resources, strict spending control, and full digitalization of the national health insurance system. “CNAS must provide better and more services for more patients. The key is efficiency and trust in the public system,” he said.