Summary
Life expectancy in Croatia remains below the EU average and temporarily declined in 2020 as a result of deaths that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the Croatian health system provides equitable access to a broad range of services, unmet needs are likely to have increased during the pandemic. With a sufficient level of physical infrastructure and number of health workers, Croatia responded quickly to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic but was more hesitant to reimpose stringent measures in subsequent waves. Rates of preventable and treatable mortality before the pandemic were comparatively high, suggesting scope for strengthening public health policies and improving health care.

Relevance
This publication describes in a relevant way the situation in the Croatian population, Croatian healthcare, provides important epidemiological data and is suitable for planning health improvement strategies