15.2 Percent of Northern Cyprus Health Budget Allocated to Referral Expenses

The Cyprus Turkish Medical Association announced that 15.2 percent of the health budget in Northern Cyprus has been allocated to referral expenses made to Turkey. Doctors emphasized that the system should focus on human resources and equipment maintenance rather than building construction.

Share of Referral Expenses

The Cyprus Turkish Medical Association announced to the public that exactly 15.2 percent of the Ministry of Health's 2026 budget has been allocated to referral expenses, demanding that the expenditures be shared transparently.

Infrastructure and Resource Debates

While allocating budgets that could establish high-tech medical devices and expert staff toward paying referral invoices draws backlash, doctors state that the real problem is not concrete building investments, but human resources and equipment maintenance.

Personnel and Bureaucratic Obstacles

While the insufficiency of personal rights for physicians in the public sector leads experts to turn to the private sector or abroad, bureaucratic obstacles in the Public Procurement Law cause malfunctioning devices to remain idle for months.

Population and Migration Issue

While population uncertainty and uncontrolled migration on the island are cited among the root causes of the imbalance in the budget, the actual population in Northern Cyprus, where an official census has not been conducted, is running well above projections.