The private healthcare services market in Romania went up by 12% in 2017, to EUR 1.7 billion, according to an analysis by medical services comparison service Mediprice.

The top five medical services companies in Romania had a combined turnover of about EUR 400 million last year, according to the same study.

Overall, this market recorded an average yearly growth rate of 9.5% between 2011 and 2016, showing a significant increase in the demand for private medical services.

“The instability of the public healthcare system and the higher available income for the middle class contributed to this evolution,” said Mediprice general manager Eliza Pintilie.

The high level of informal payments in the state medical system pushed many patients to private units. The number of private hospitals in Romania thus doubled between 2011 and 2016 to 200 units while he number of private medical centers tripled to over 600.

editor@romania-insider.com