Health Ministry Demands Exemption From Planned 3.5 Billion Shekel Budget Cut
Ministry of Health Director-General Moshe Bar Siman-Tov urged the Finance Ministry to exempt the healthcare system from a planned 3.5 billion shekel budget cut, warning of severe consequences for public services.
Health Ministry Warns Against Budget Cuts
Ministry of Health Director-General Moshe Bar Siman-Tov has called on the Ministry of Finance to exempt the healthcare system from an upcoming broad government budget cut of 3.5 billion shekels. He warned that implementing such a measure would lead to severe and inevitable damage to public health services.
In a strongly worded letter sent to Ministry of Finance Director-General Israel Malachi and Budget Director Mehran Prozner, Bar Siman-Tov noted that the new cuts would bring cumulative damage to healthcare budgets to approximately 600 million shekels since the beginning of 2026. Copies of the letter were sent to Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich and Health Minister Haim Katz.
Impact on Essential Services and National Resilience
According to the data presented, the current operating budget of the Health Ministry has already been slashed by about 500 million shekels this year, representing roughly 20 percent of its total. Furthermore, over 100 positions within the ministry have been eliminated amid ongoing wartime financial pressures.
Bar Siman-Tov emphasized that the new cuts would jeopardize mental health services, resilience centers, hospital fortification projects, and emergency preparedness. He argued that the strategy of continuously funding security needs through the systematic erosion of civilian and public services fails to recognize the broader components of national resilience, stating that Israel's strength relies on more than just military might.
