Italy has a good health care system OECD says

(ANSA) - Rome, January 15 - Italy has a good health care system although marked differences between and within regions persist, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said on Thursday.
    Health outcomes in Italy are amongst the best among OECD member countries, with positive performance figures for life expectancy, hospital admission rates for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and mortality after a stroke or heart attack, according to the latest OECD review of health care quality in the country.
    However, these apparently reassuring figures mask "profound regional differences", the Paris-based organisation said.
    "Italy is an extremely heterogeneous country both socially and economically," read the report.
    "This heterogeneity is reflected in the heath system: despite attempts at harmonisation regional disparities in terms of the quality of the care provided remain significant." Health care quality is also threatened by the risk of budget cuts, while too little emphasis is placed on prevention, the OECD said.