The Criminalisation of Informal Payments in Hungarian Healthcare: Legal Change and Social Attitudes

Jáger, Eszter and Czebe, András (2025) The Criminalisation of Informal Payments in Hungarian Healthcare: Legal Change and Social Attitudes. STUDIA JURIDICA ET POLITICA JAURINENSIS, 12 (2). pp. 15-31. ISSN 2064-5902

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Abstract

This article examines the criminalisation of informal payments in Hungarian healthcare, with particular attention to the legal uncertainty that preceded the 2020 reform, the logic of the new anti-corruption framework, and the social attitudes surrounding its enforcement. It analyses the former judicial treatment of “hálapénz”, the legislative shift introduced by Act C of 2020, and the broader question whether criminal law can effectively eliminate a practice that has long been socially embedded. Drawing on questionnaire-based research, the article also explores public knowledge of the current regulation and attitudes towards the punishability of informal payments. It argues that criminalisation may narrow the scope of the practice, but that its long-term reduction is likely to depend on broader structural improvements in the healthcare system, including legal clarity, institutional trust, and the perceived fairness and quality of care.

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