Read all posts for ‘Central and Eastern Europe’

Healthcare reform has triggered many controversies in Romania ranging from street protests in January 2012 over a new healthcare bill to massive online activism just a year later against government plans to prevent citizens from using their mandatory health insurance in private hospitals. To be really honest and without being […]

In spite of the recent downturn in the economy, Hungary is still considered a welfare state. Political statements echo this view, claiming that healthcare is for free. The moves by the former government, which tried to implement a “visit fee” of one Euro to help finance healthcare, are often criticized, […]

Should you ever end up on the operating table in Romania, one of the last thoughts that might go through your mind before passing out is: “Did I pay the doctor enough?” Photo: The U.S. National Archives For a long time, as a child, I was convinced my grandmother was […]

What would you do with a country where you have a very generous healthcare system, an aging society and a pretty complicated economic situation? Hungary is well known as a country on its way to embracing Western European standards in terms of social security and economic success. A lesser known […]

Over the past few years, Hungarians have spent far more than they could afford. Now the government is trying to save them from the consequences of the financial crisis and their own irresponsibility. But is it really a good idea to be such a nanny? Before the financial crisis, bank […]