Spanish regions look set to overspend health budgets

Spain's eight autonomous regions have spent 75% of their annual health budgets in the first eight months of the year, reveals Insalud's subdirectorate general of economic expenditure. This compares unfavourably with the national health agency itself, which has slightly underspent for the period. Those regions which have taken control of their own budgets have already spent Pta 1,505,182 million ($11,852 million) of their annual budget of Pta 1,994,363 million, while Insalud-controlled health expenditure was 60% of its annual budget of Pta 1,295,208 million. In the present situation, there is no mechanism to increase budgets during the year.