Guaranteed benefits covering the implementation of nutritional standards in healthcare facilities for all healthcare services provided as part of hospital treatment
Pursuant to Article 31lb(3)(4) of the Act of August 27, 2004, on healthcare services financed from public funds (i.e. Journal of Laws of 2024, item 146, as amended), the President of the Agency for Health Technology Assessment and Tariff System hereby announces that a report on the determination of tariffs for guaranteed services covering the implementation of nutrition standards in healthcare facilities for all healthcare services provided as part of hospital treatment has been published in the Agency’s Public Information Bulletin.
The proposed tariff projects for hospital treatment (LSZ), psychiatric care and addiction treatment, and medical rehabilitation are based on an analysis of the costs resulting from the implementation of the nutrition standard in healthcare facilities. This analysis covered the additional financing of patient nutrition necessary to meet the new requirements.
The basis for assessing the impact of the standard on the valuation of services was a detailed analysis of the structure of billing products and the manner in which services are provided. A key step was to determine how many days of patient stays under individual products should be covered by the nutrition allowance. The daily nutrition rate appropriate for a given patient category was added to this number, which made it possible to estimate the full cost of nutrition within each service.
It is worth noting that the new supplement does not replace the existing funding for nutrition, but rather supplements it. Its role is to provide the means to effectively implement the nutrition standard in various types of health services.
The introduction of the supplement will also have significant organizational consequences. The implementation of the nutrition standard requires the streamlining and standardization of processes related to menu planning, meal preparation, staff organization, and monitoring of the quality and compliance of nutrition with the standard. These changes will increase the transparency of existing solutions and create conditions for a lasting improvement in the quality of nutrition, which is important for patient safety, treatment effectiveness, and positive health experiences.
As a result, the implementation of the standard will ensure uniform quality of patient nutrition throughout the system. The supplement will allow hospitals to improve the nutritional value of meals, better adapt them to clinical needs, and streamline internal nutrition processes. From a systemic perspective, this will translate into greater consistency of care, more equal access to services, and a better patient experience.
A financial analysis indicates that the cost of implementing the nutritional supplement will amount to PLN 895.5 million, which corresponds to 1.3% of the value of the services covered by the analysis. This increase applies to both services billed according to tariffs and service valuations.
For comparison, the “Good Meal” pilot program, which ends at the end of the year, provided service providers with total revenues of PLN 864.9 million per year. The introduction of the supplement resulting from the implementation of the nutrition standard will ensure higher-level financing — PLN 895.5 million, i.e., PLN 30.6 million more (an increase of 3.5% compared to the costs of the pilot program).
Comments on the report may be submitted within 7 days of its publication, i.e. by 18 December 2025, using the Comment Submission Form, sent to: taryfa.uwagi@aotm.gov.pl.
If you are submitting comments on the proposed tariffs, due to the urgent nature of the work, please attach your own cost calculation justifying a different proposal.
If you have not used an electronic signature, please, in addition to sending your comments by email, submit a completed and hand-signed Declaration of Industry Affiliations to the Agency’s headquarters (ul. Przeskok 2, 00-032 Warsaw) or send it by post or courier to the Agency’s address.
The form can be downloaded, along with instructions on how to complete and submit it, from the report publication site.
Redirect to the report publication site
The comments and suggestions collected will be discussed at a meeting of the Tariff Council and published on the AOTMiT Public Information Bulletin for a period of 6 months. Then, in accordance with Article 31lb(2) of the Act on healthcare services financed from public funds, the Council will issue a statement and the President of the Agency, after obtaining the consent of the Minister of Health, will determine the tariffs for services in the form of an announcement.