Waiting lists: only three regions meet the targets for appointments and two for tests

Only three regions meet the guarantee threshold of 90 per cent compliance with maximum waiting times across all priority categories monitored for first appointments; this figure drops to two for diagnostic tests. This is highlighted in the latest independent analysis by Salutequità, based on public data as at 30 September from the National Waiting Lists Platform managed by Agenas. Specifically, the three regions that meet the 90 per cent guarantee threshold for compliance with maximum waiting times across all monitored priority categories for first appointments are Basilicata (which, however, does not report figures for emergency cases), Marche and Lazio, which joins the first two. In total, these regions have just over 7.7 million inhabitants, representing 13.1 per cent of the Italian population. As regards diagnostic tests, the only regions to meet the target across all categories are Basilicata (again, excluding data on urgent cases) and Veneto, with a combined population of approximately 5.4 million, representing 9.1 per cent of the population.

“We are not looking for league tables, but for real answers for the public,” says Tonino Aceti, president of Salutequità, “and the partial improvement recorded does not mean that the Region is meeting the maximum waiting times: even the 90 per cent threshold, as stipulated by the legislation, leaves people waiting beyond the timeframes deemed appropriate for their health condition. For initial consultations, seven areas have seen a deterioration and twelve an improvement, out of the nineteen that can be compared. It is difficult to speak of a turning point. Unfortunately, as things stand, the reality is that citizens’ right to have the maximum waiting times laid down by law respected is guaranteed in only three regions for consultations and in two for tests, thereby undermining the right of access to treatment.”

A comparison with June confirms, in fact, a worrying picture. For first visits, including emergency cases, 12 out of 19 comparable areas have improved their average rate of compliance with maximum waiting times, whilst 7 have seen a deterioration. For diagnostic tests, there were 12 improvements and 8 deteriorations out of 20 comparable regions. Taking appointments and tests together, 11 regions improved and 8 deteriorated, out of the 19 comparable regions. The comparison includes 19 regions because data on emergency cases (class U) is missing for Basilicata – for both consultations and diagnostic tests – and for the Autonomous Province of Bolzano for consultations only. For diagnostic tests, therefore, the number of comparable regions rises to 20.

The improvement in waiting lists compared with 2025, as documented in the latest Agenas bulletin, is a positive sign. However, Salutequità’s new analysis of data from the National Waiting Lists Platform offers an additional and more nuanced perspective. ‘The September figures,’ continues Aceti, ‘tell us that we cannot yet speak of a reversal in the trend regarding waiting lists. The improvement recorded in diagnostic tests is a sign worth noting, but it cannot mask the deterioration affecting seven regions in terms of first consultations. And when we combine the two types of services, progress is limited to just eleven regions.”

“The picture that emerges relates to September and is probably also affected by staff availability, which, as we know, always deteriorates in the summer,” explains Aceti, “and which the Court of Auditors highlights as a critical issue. But for members of the public, this still means that the right to an appointment or a test within the timeframe specified in the doctor’s referral continues not to be guaranteed in the manner provided for by law and consistently across the country.”