Latvia

Health systems in transition
Latvia
technologies are approved each year. The assessment of pharmaceuticals is the
competency of State Agency of Medicines, and for this the procedure differs.
The heads of health institutions are financially interested in the use of
only approved technologies, because this is a factor that must be taken into
consideration in the conclusion of contracts with the SCHIA. Any health care
institution can only receive state budget resources for health care services
provision when the two main conditions of the cooperation agreement are
fulfilled: the treatment institution must be assessed in accordance with
compulsory requirements (Section 4.1 Regulation, Subsection Regulation and
governance of providers); and it must use only approved medical technologies.
If the requirements are not met, the health care institution will receive income
only from commercial activities in the health sector (direct payments), as it
will be unable to secure contracts with the SCHIA.
All technologies are subject to assessment by means of the above procedures,
with the exception of technologies that were in use during the Soviet period,
in which case the assessment requirements are not so strict. In such cases, for
example, there are no requirements for a literature review and description of
the method of use by the user.
Information systems
The legal basis for the collection of statistical data in Latvia is formed by the
laws listed here.
• “Law on National Statistics” (adopted by Parliament in 1997 with most
recent amendments in 2006), which defines the institutions responsible for
the country’s statistics, and the rights and duties of the legal and physical
persons in this area. This Law also defines the rights and duties of the Central
Statistics Bureau, which is the leading institution in the field of statistics.
• “Law on Civil Registration Records” (adopted by Parliament in 2005),
which deals with legal registration of civil records (marriages, births and
deaths).
• “Regulations of the Cabinet of Ministers on the National Programme of
Statistical Information” (adopted in 2006), which determine responsibilities
for the preparation of statistical information, and inform the users of data
about the terms and types of data, and how it is possible to receive specific
statistical information.
The HSMTSA is the institution responsible for collecting health-related data
in Latvia. The Agency’s Health Statistics Department carries out collection,
processing and analysis of statistical data and information about public health
and health care, and ensures the fulfilment of international obligations in the
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