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The intention of Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (VšZP, General Health Insurance Company) to reduce the costs of hospitals on pharmaceuticals and medical devices has failed. Hospitals are spending even more. This results from the analysis of the costs of hospitals made by VšZP. During February and March hospitals should have reduced their average monthly costs on pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements and medical devices by 7%. Based on this VšZP increased from February the amount of finances for discharges, specially paid health services and outpatient care. Hospitals, however, failed to meet their commitment.

Health insurance companies will make an annual accounting also for policyholders, who are expected to have overpayment. Act, withal, does not require this from insurance companies. Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) despite the fact that the act on health insurance does not consider these groups, will make an annual accounting also in the cases, when health insurance company does not have to, but may make an annual accounting because it will result in overpayment. Insurance companies Dôvera and Union will proceed similarly.  

Concept of terminal network of hospitals will be renewed from October. Amendment to the Act on Health Insurance was approved by the Parliament. Terminal network of hospitals will contains those institutions that are of strategic importance for state. Health insurance companies will be required to conclude the contracts with them. This concept was cancelled by former Government because such approach arguably led to the market deformations by favoring of selected (state-owned) health care institutions.

Ministry of Health is planning the changes in operation of night emergency services and allegedly considers also the time limit. Primary care doctors are asking for reduction of their night duty to 10 pm. According to the spokeswoman of the Ministry of Health Zuzana Čižmáriková the Ministry is aware of the problems with night emergencies. Doctors require also the establishment of basic rules for first aid medical services. According to them there is an absence of arrangements of relationships between providers and physicians.

Doctors in Krupina city have not been paid from the beginning of the year for their night emergency service. In January they asked local hospital for 50% increase of payments. As they did not make an agreement, 9 out of 10 doctors did not sign the contracts and hospital did not pay them since that time. According to the President of the Association of private doctors Ladislav Pásztor, who represents the discontent doctors, despite this fact doctors are liable for working for private provider. According to the law if the primary care physicians do not enter into night service they could face a fine in amount of €3 000.

Parliament approved increase of state payments for its policyholders, change of risk-adjusted re-distribution of premium and change of solvency criteria of health insurance companies. Premium for state policyholders will increase from July 2012 to 4.32%. This is how the governmental reserve of €50 million will pour into the healthcare system. New predictor will be considered in the risk-adjusted re-distribution among health insurance companies – PCG as the proxy of the chronic illnesses of policyholders.

Nurses want due to avoiding of increasing of their wages turn themselves with an incentive to investigate the proceeding of state authorities and some health and non-health institutions to the public protector of rights Jana Dubovcová. The new law should have brought them the higher wages from April 2012. Since the Act entered into force, nurses and midwives experienced several intentions of employers for seeking of the ways how to avoid the fulfilling of the law, thus declaring of the minimum wage claim of nurses and midwives. 

After nurses also labour inspectors warn that hospitals are not paying nurses their full wages. From eight hospitals visited by inspectors, nurses were deprived of their wages by the management of three institutions – in Brezno, Zvolen and Veľký Krtíš. Directors allegedly did not have any objections to the findings and proposed measures and made an agreement on the deadline of corrections. Nurses, who would like to have their wages paid, have to, however, solve it on the court.   

In the times when some hospitals were struggling with the lack of pharmaceuticals for their oncological patients, hospital in Prešov traded with them. Despite of its high loss, hospital purchased pharmaceuticals for seven months ahead and sold them immediately to two distribution companies. Incentive of the excessive purchase of pharmaceuticals and subsequent sale is not clear. Ministry of Health will not complain against former management, as according to Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská the law was not violated. 

Nurses are calling on the Government, Ministries of Labour and Health, as well as Parliament to urgently seek for the solution of stalemate situation, which occurred in connection with the fulfilling of also their wage claims. They also dislike the way of fulfilling of new act, which should have increased their wages from April. Due to the new supplements to the distribution of the duties they therefore do not exclude the initiative to the Constitutional Court for violation of fundamental human rights. They also want to inform the international organizations and ask them for help.