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Proposal of political party Smer for allowing of discounts in pharmacies up to half of surcharge for pharmaceutical is according to the Vice President of political party SDKÚ, Viliam Novotný, a pig in a poke. According to him this will aggrieve patients and health insurance companies. It will be, according to him, besides this, a non-transparent system, as the pharmacy will not have to publish the amount of offered discount. Patient will be according to him confused in this new system of discounts, as currently patient knows that he/she runs on the loyalty system and knows how to claim the discount. 

Managements of the hospitals are developing the pressure on doctors to not only sign the approval with overtimes, but also to camouflage the number of it, so they formally do not exceed the limit set by the Labour Code. This is claimed by the Medical Trade Union. According to the Union for example in the Faculty hospital in Nitra there are spread information that chiefs of departments are obligated to negotiate with all doctors, who do not want to sign the services, but also to personally “remind” them of all possibilities resulting from disagreement with services for 2013, as a three-shift operation, non-signing of circulations and zero personal assessment.  

Factory producing pharmaceuticals in Hlohovec is being bought by the Czech-Slovak investment group Wood & Company. Final contract on the take-over of the factory was allegedly already signed. Financial group has created a new separate company – Wood Pharma Holding, for taking over of the factory. Financial group is taking over the biggest Slovak pharmaceutical factory with almost 1 000 employees and with annual revenues exceeding € 200 million. 

Doctors in hospitals might newly stop serving the overtimes. As was in the frame of common protest of doctors from V4 countries announced by the medical trade unionists, they have repeatedly shown their ability to act and they are ready to show on the non-compliance with Labour Code by termination of medical services. Doctors would thus, according to the President of Medical Trade Union, Peter Visolajský, go home at 3.30 pm. They do not want to exacerbate the situation until the end of this year, they prefer the dialogue. 

Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská wants to allow pharmacies to provide patients with discounts from surcharges for pharmaceuticals at the expense of their margin. It will depend on pharmacy, whether it will use this possibility and what amount of discount it will offer. Discount, however, cannot exceed the half of surcharge. Zvolenská wants this change to enter into force from January. The change should be a part of the reform of pharmaceutical acts, which will prohibit the loyalty discounts in pharmacies. Slovak Pharmaceutical Chamber is surprised by this proposal. Its Vice President Ondrej Sukeľ suspects Penta of a pressure. 

Minister of Health perceives the extension of validity of licences for ambulances rather as a technical adjustment, which should have resulted from the technical requirements of the providers. Amendment to the act on healthcare providers should besides longer licences bring also the changes in the way of the selection procedure of the providers of ambulances, where the new requirements are being added. This way, according to Zvolenská, the Ministry responds to the finding of the court, where the previous system of distribution of licences, made by former Minister Richard Raši, has ended. The reason for this should have been the requirements in the frame of selection proceeding beyond the law.

Representatives of doctors and patients want to fight with diabetes systematically. Slovak Diabetes Society therefore prepared the proposal of National Diabetes Program, which focuses on five goals. According to the President of the Society, Emil Martinka, this program is based on European Union requirements. It is focused on prevention of this disease, its early diagnosis and the best treatment of the patients. Important part of the program is an active screening of this diseases and nationwide education on the risks of diabetes and healthy lifestyle.

Medical Trade Union calls on Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská to submit the proposal, which contains the exact term of implementation of legislative guarantee of the third increasing of salaries of doctors. As was further stated in the statement provided by the President of the Union, Peter Visolajský, they are also asking the Minister for not connecting the experiment of implementation of unitary system with the legislative guarantee of third increasing of salaries. 

Patients are most satisfied with the quality of services in specialized, especially private hospitals. This results from the evaluation of hospitals, in which 6 000 policyholders of insurance company Dôvera expressed their opinion. Evaluation covered the approach of doctors and nurses, quality of accommodation, food, cleanliness of the departments and quality of health care. Among the faculty hospitals, patients were most satisfied with the Central Military Hospital in Ružomberok, while the best general hospital is according to this ranking a hospital in Stará Ľubovňa.

Doctors will come out to the streets again. This time they, however, will leave hospitals and patients only during a lunch break. Together with their colleagues from V4 countries they want to remind their governments of their commitment to the health care sector. In Slovakia also nurses and midwives will join the protest. Start of the action named “Sick system threatens everyone” is planned symbolically at 12.05 pm. Participants of the protest should come from five biggest hospitals in Bratislava, Košice, Banská Bystrica, Žilina and Prešov.