Italy’s New Mental Health Plan Faces Funding, Terminology Challenges
Rome, Italy – Italy’s recently unveiled National Mental Health Action plan is being hailed as a potential turning point in the country’s approach to mental healthcare, arriving 47 years after the landmark Basaglia Law which closed psychiatric hospitals and 25 years after the last national mental health plan. However,experts caution that the plan’s success hinges on adequate funding – comparable to that of other European nations – and a more direct acknowledgement of the severity of mental illness,rather than framing it as “discomfort.”
The new plan aims to strengthen existing mental health structures, which are currently overburdened, and address the frequently enough-overlooked needs of families supporting loved ones with mental health conditions. Critics argue that the continued use of the term ”discomfort” minimizes the seriousness of conditions, perhaps hindering effective treatment and contributing to stigma. A frank recognition of mental illness as a genuine disease,they say,is crucial for both patient care and reducing societal biases.The plan’s implementation and resource allocation will be closely watched to determine if it can deliver meaningful improvements to a system long in need of modernization and investment.
As of September 16, 2025, the plan is under review for budgetary alignment and potential revisions to terminology. © RESERVED REPRODUCTION.
