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Hospitals, which did not increase the salaries of nurses in accordance with applicable legislation, are afraid of the sanctions. One of the threats is a Labour Inspectorate, which may impose penalty for violation of labour law. Problems, however, might be also caused by insurance companies. Control of the fulfilment of personnel norms falls within the competency of health insurance companies. These may, after finding of the failings, access to different measures, for example also to the termination of their contractual relationship.

Private outpatient doctors are asking for the same adjustment of minimum wages as it is in the case of doctors in hospitals. According to the president of the Association of Private Doctors, Ladislav Pázstor, they are asking for the basic salary in amount of € 1 600. He  assumes that, in terms of their members, outpatient sector would need € 118 million per year, as together with higher salary of nurse the costs on the outpatient clinic would be € 2 900 monthly. Association has allegedly also prepared its own plan of protests.

Management of hospital in Poprad signed a new contract with health insurance company Dôvera. Hospital will thus provide the Dôvera policyholders not only with acute care, but also with the planned operations. After publishing in central register of contracts the contract will enter into force on Saturday, April 14th. According to the director of hospital the new contract conditions constitutes the compromise between insurance company and hospital.

As results from the report on development of the debts in health care system, new management of Ministry of Health plans to continue in decreasing of expenses on pharmaceuticals from the public health insurance. Planned measures involve the de-listing of supportive and supplementary pharmaceuticals from the reimbursement from health insurance and tightening of the rules of price-referencing of the pharmaceuticals. Ministry also expects savings due to creation of central purchasing unit. This unit will, based on the comparison of prices of all institutions in the scope of MoH, recommend the purchase price. 

Risk-adjusted redistribution of health insurance contributions between the insurance companies on the basis of morbidity of patients will bring first results next year. Acute problem of hospitals with the lack of funds for higher salaries of healthcare professionals will therefore not be solved by this measure. First fair redistribution will allegedly occur not sooner than in October or November and real effect may be expected in 2013. Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) has the highest risk-index and new redistribution should bring it approximately € 30 million extra. These could be afterwards distributed to hospitals.

First negotiation between nurses and new Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská did not bring any concrete results. Slovak Chamber of Nurses and Midwives and Minister were seeking for the solutions of the problem with statutory raise of salaries and allegedly took over some alternatives how to solve the situation with its financial covering. Minister will talk with Ministry of Finance and then she will meet nurses again.

Representatives of hospital in Poprad and health insurance company Dôvera negotiated on the new contract again. Both sides are allegedly finalizing the last details of agreement and are preparing themselves for its conclusion. Hospital in Poprad is from April the 1st non-contractual provider of health care for Dôvera policyholders. Hospital in Poprad is the only one healthcare institution which did not make an agreement with Dôvera on a new contract. 

Prime Minister Robert Fico asked Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská to prepare the legal measure, which would limit the opportunity of profit-making for health insurance companies in accordance with the Constitution as well as with international law. Profit-making has currently two conditions. First one is an obligation to use the profit for creating of reserve fund and second one is mandatory making of reserves for payments of patients on waiting lists.

Redistribution of health insurance contributions should be adjusted by a new parameter – morbidity (through PCG). This should be one of the system solutions which minister Zuzana Zvolenská wants to implement in the effort to find money for higher salaries of healthcare professionals. Contributions from policyholders are currently redistributed by Health Care Surveillance Authority on the basis of age, sex and economic activity of patients. Adding the predictor of morbidity would allegedly mean that the state-owned Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) would get additional € 30 million from private health insurance companies. 

President Ivan Gašparovič and representatives of doctors, hospitals and trade unions agreed on their meeting that the situation in health care is extremely serious and requires acute solutions. According to the head of the state it is necessary to quickly amend the existing health laws and he also expects that state should increase the payment for its policyholders. Next week he will talk about the necessary steps with Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská.