In October 2003 through May 2004, the Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI) implemented a project on a viable health care system in Lithuania. The primary aim of the project was to promote an effective healthcare system in Lithuania by formulating a conceptual framework and by preparing specific policy proposals for health care system reform. The project explored how costs are distributed within the health care system with a view to identifying ways of providing the most cost-effective and high-quality medical treatment. In the course of the project, LFMI cooperated with state institutions, the media, and other organizations. The project was supported by the U.S. Department of State.
To present the reform model which was developed during the project, LFMI launched a wide dissemination campaign. In February 2004, LFMI staged a seminar “The Prospects of Private Medical Practice in Lithuania’s Health Care System.” The seminar gathered around 80 participants – representatives from private and public health care institutions, the Ministry of Health, municipalities, and insurance companies. The event was also attended by health care analysts and journalists. Heated, but constructive, discussions at the seminar proved that the issue of health care reform is of great relevance to Lithuanian society. In addition to that, LFMI’s policy analysts also gave a number of interviews in the specialised media and commented widely on the proposed health care reform in national mass media.
