UKC Maribor after nine million euros of state aid in five months reaped almost ten million euros in losses

The University Clinical Center Maribor (UKC Maribor) has recorded nearly 10 million euros in losses during the first five months of this year, making it the largest loss among all Slovenian hospitals. The figure represents almost four times the loss recorded in the same period last year, highlighting a dramatic financial decline. According to data from the Ministry of Health, the hospital’s losses account for approximately 6 percent of its total revenue, which amounts to around 166.7 million euros. This means that for every euro earned, the institution incurs roughly six cents in deficit. In addition to the initial five-month loss, the hospital has suffered an additional 6.2 million euros in losses over the past two months alone, bringing the total to nearly 9.9 million euros. This surge in losses occurred primarily in April and May, with the average monthly loss increasing from around 1.2 million euros in the first quarter to more than three million euros in the subsequent months. The financial situation has deteriorated significantly compared to the previous year, when the loss was just over 2.2 million euros, now the gap has widened by more than 7.6 million euros, representing a 340 percent increase. The Ministry of Health attributes the financial challenges to the leadership of the institution, emphasizing their responsibility for the current state of affairs. However, the hospital's management points to several factors contributing to the crisis. These include undervaluation of medical services, insufficient funding relative to actual operational costs, rising expenses related to work and healthcare services, and the cost of staff replacement, which is not included in service prices. They estimate that the underfunding is approximately 50 euros per unit of weight processed, which is used to determine the complexity of individual treatments. A low valuation of these weights can lead to deficits even when workload increases. The hospital’s leadership stated that some programs exceeded planned performance, and the amount of work carried out was greater than in the same period last year. Therefore, they do not attribute the deficit to failure to meet program targets, but rather to the mismatch between income and the costs of services performed. They did not provide specific figures detailing how much of the loss relates to labor, materials, services, or underfunded programs. Despite the worsening financial outlook, the hospital’s board approved a financial plan for 2026 in April, aiming for balanced operations. The plan projected revenues of approximately 420.8 million euros, an increase of 17.4 million euros compared to 2025. Expenses were expected to rise by 4.6 percent, mainly due to wage reforms, progress, new hires, and other payments. However, the financial plan was prepared based on regulations for the year 2026, and there is no indication yet that the ministry will allocate additional funds from the national budget to cover the shortfall. The hospital is required to submit a stabilization plan by the end of August.