Factsheet – Slovenia
Health system overview
Compulsory health insurance is provided by the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia (HIIS)[1], financed through contributions from employers and employees and other groups, with complementary and additional insurance. Since 1 January 2024, complementary health insurance has been abolished, and its monthly premium (approximately €35) has been incorporated into a new compulsory health insurance contribution.”
The main organizations that operate in the administrative, constitution and configuration of the health system of Slovenia:
Parliamentary Committee on Health → social consensus on all laws and legal matters
Ministry of health (MZ: Ministrstvo za zdravje) → health policy and legislation; founder and management of secondary and tertiary healthcare Ministrstvo za zdravje | GOV.SI
Agency for medical products and medical devices of the Republic of Slovenia (JAZMP): Javna agencija Republike Slovenije za zdravila in medicinske pripomočke)→ medical product / device regulation JAZMP – Javna agencija Republike Slovenije za zdravila in medicinske pripomočke
Health Council
National institute of public health of Slovenia (NIJZ: Nacionalni inštitut za javno zdravstvo) → central public health institution https://nijz.si/
National laboratory for health, environment and food (NLZOH: Nacionalni laboratorij za zdravje, okolje in hrano) → public health labs and monitoring Naslovnica – NLZOH
Health insurance institute of Slovenia (ZZZS: Zavod za zdravstveno zavarovanje Slovenije )→ insurance and reimbursement policies Domov – Zavod za zdravstveno zavarovanje Slovenije
Local government → management of the primary healthcare network in their territory
Compulsory healtcare insuarance in 2024
https://www.zzzs.si/fileadmin/user_upload/dokumenti/about_us/infographics_chi_in_year_2024.pdf
Funding & budget allocation
In 2023, Slovenia allocated €518.2 million to R&D, with the health sector receiving approximately €45 million with foreseen increasing for 2024 up to €49 million.
Digital challenges for the Slovenian economy include a lack of digital skills, low up-take of public digital services and a slow integration of digital technology into its business models. Under its national Recovery and Resilience Plan for 2021-26, Slovenia is scheduled to receive almost €225 million, which is equivalent to 4.7% of GDP. Around three quarters will come from grants, and about 9% of the total allocation is intended for health. Around half (€110 million) of the Recovery and Resilience Plan allocation for health is dedicated to treatment for communicable diseases, and roughly one third (€83 million) will support the digital transformation of healthcare. The rest will be spent on improving health system accessibility (€23 million) and training for the health workforce (€8 million) on quality of care.
This support will be complemented by the rollout of the EU Cohesion Policy 2021-27 programme. Co-financed at 68 % by the EU, Slovenia is set to invest over €103 million in its healthcare system, with almost €28 million from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for health equipment. From the remaining €75 million from the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), 80% will be used to invest in enhancing the accessibility, effectiveness and readiness of the Slovenian health system, and 20% will be spent on healthcare digitalisation.
National actors to foster innovation are:
- Slovenian Research and innovation Agency (ARIS)
- Public Agency for Entrepreneurship, Internationalization, foreign Investments and Technology (SPIRIT Slovenia)
- Slovene Enterprise Fund (SPS).
Slovenia: Country Health Profile 2023
Care delivery & purchasing
Slovenia operates a mixed procurement model for public healthcare:
- High-level policies, budgets, and major tenders (e.g., hospital equipment, large framework agreements) are centrally managed, by ZZZS.
- Smaller purchases and investments in equipment may still be handled locally by individual healthcare provider, indicating a partially decentralized system.
The Digital Health market is rapidly expanding, driven by rising demand for convenient, remote, and personalized healthcare solutions—such as telemedicine and wearables—fuelled by evolving customer preferences, supportive macroeconomic trends, and accelerated adoption during the COVID-19 pandemic.
There is no provision for preference over local and foreign suppliers for medical products. However, in public procurement, price is the determining factor.
Digital health Infrastructure
Central Registry of Patient Data (CRPD)
The CRPD is the core system of Slovenian eHealth, designed for exchanging and sharing electronic health records on a national level. All Slovenian healthcare providers are obliged to duly submit medical records to the CRPD and are entitled to use them for the purpose of healthcare treatment. Patients have access to their CRPD data via the zVEM patient portal and mobile application. The content of the CRPD comprises various types of healthcare documentation and structured Patient Summary records. In addition to the data provided as part of healthcare treatment, patient statements, such as advance directives and privacy consents, are stored in the CRPD.
zVEM Portal
The zVEM portal is a “one-stop shop” portal for patients. Digital identity is used for identification and authentication of patients. Patients have access to the data that is stored on them in the eHealth databases. The zVEM portal provides patients with full access to their healthcare documentation, referrals, appointments, prescriptions, dispensations and digital Covid certificates.
ePrescription
ePrescription is designed to support electronic prescribing and dispensing of medications. It also provides access to drug interaction databases for doctors and pharmacists.
eAppointment and eReferral
The eAppointment system enables referral documents (eReferrals) to be processed and appointments booked. An online waiting list is available for over 1700 healthcare services. Patients can book appointments via the zVEM portal.
The ongoing project »Slovenia-eHealth for a healthier society 2022-2027« is implemented within the framework of the Structural Reform Support Programme (SRSP) of the European Commission. The project is aimed at development of an eHealth Strategy and investment plan, that will outline the objectives and priorities for the development of eHealth in Slovenia for the period 2022-2027. In addition, a way to implement a unified electronic health record will be elaborated, as well as the design of a national telemedicine framework and the revision of related legislation to enable better oversight of the eHealth system and to streamline data flows for better patient care and informed policy making.
Slovenia- eHealth for a healthier society 2022-2027
https://ezdrav.si/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Digitalising-Slovenias-healthcare-system.pdf
Reimbursement for digital services
Telemedicine in Slovenia is partially reimbursed by Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia, if it meets coding, contracts and quality conditions requirements.
Telemedicine: Partially reimbursed if it meets ZZZS coding, contract, and quality conditions.
Digital Therapeutics: No reimbursement structures exist yet for DTx within Slovenia’s health system.
https://ezdrav.si/jezik-anglesko/
Key challenges & priorities
Challenges:
Slovenia’s key health system challenges – workforce shortages, outdated infrastructure, unequal access to services, and limited digital connectivity – simultaneously create areas for development and innovation. Opportunities lie in strengthening primary care and preventive programs, advancing digital transformation through eHealth records, telemedicine, and AI, and fostering the development of new medical devices and chronic disease management solutions. Further potential exists in partnerships and participation in European innovation clusters, greater use of EU and national funding for digitalization and research, and a stronger patient-centered approach to reduce regional disparities and improve system equity.
Slovenia is actively pursuing the implementation of ValueBasedHeathCare (VBHC) to improve patient outcomes and cost-effectiveness. Key initiatives include: i) Developing guidelines for VBHC implementation, focusing on conditions like cardiovascular diseases and musculoskeletal disorders, ii) Emphasizing the measurement of patient-reported outcomes and integrating these metrics into care delivery, iii) Investing in digital infrastructure to support data collection and analysis necessary for VBHC.
National priorities & initiatives:
System reforms
- Structural reform of the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia (ZZZS)
- Comprehensive reform of healthcare financing
- Reform of centralized public procurement
- Reform of oversight and management of public healthcare institutions
Workforce & pay
- Reform of the public employees’ pay system
- Healthcare workforce
- Regulation of absenteeism
- Addressing challenges in family and emergency medicine
Digitalization
- Digitalization of healthcare
Access & services
- Concessions in healthcare services
Guidelines for implementation Value-based HealthCare in Slovenia
[1] HIIS – Health insuarance institute Slovenija / ZZZS – Zavod za zdravstveno zavarovanje Slovenije
