Community homes: State-Regions Conference gives the go-ahead for the contract for general practitioners

Following an extraordinary meeting, the State-Regions Conference has given its final approval to the National Collective Agreement governing the provision of general practitioners in community homes. As announced by the Regions, the agreement completes the process enabling the arrangement to become fully operational by 30 June 2026, thereby meeting the deadlines set out in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). The Regions state that the agreement ‘ensures that community homes have the essential professionals required for the care and management of patients, in accordance with a care model that is closer to the people’.

According to the Under-Secretary at the Ministry of the Economy Sandra Savino, the final approval by the State-Regions Conference “shows that, when institutional dialogue is based on merit and responsibility, solutions that benefit the country can be achieved. Strengthening local healthcare means reducing the pressure on hospitals, improving prevention, bringing the State closer to citizens and ensuring a more organised response to healthcare needs. It is a direction that the Government intends to support with seriousness, balance and practicality’.

The text of the agreement was signed on 23 June by Sisac (Interregional Organisation of Contracted Healthcare Professionals) and the trade unions Fimmg and Fmt, following intensive discussions between the Government, the Regions and the trade unions.

The go-ahead from the State-Regions Conference “marks an important step towards making the Community Centres fully operational and strengthening the provision of care for citizens across the region. “This achievement confirms the serious and responsible work carried out by the Government, the Regions and the Autonomous Provinces to put the NRRP’s objectives on community-based healthcare into practice,” notes the Under-Secretary for the Economy.

Savino explains that “we are looking at an investment of 2 billion euros, linked to a national target of at least 1,038 community centres with services up and running by June 2026. Today’s agreement brings this objective closer to the everyday lives of citizens, as it defines the role of general practitioners in the new local healthcare system’.