Tag: health insurance companies

Political party OĽaNO wants to introduce to political party Smer-SD the amendment to the act that would prohibit the profit of health insurance companies. According to the head of the party, Igor Matovič, it would be an amendment to the constitutional act, which would newly define the health insurance as a public interest, and amendment to the act on health insurance companies, which would prohibit their profits. Profit could be according to him created from savings from package, which is legally intended for their overhead expenses. 

State General Health Insurance Company plans to extend its influence in hospitals. From January it should start choosing for healthcare institutions the external suppliers of laboratory tests. Currently it is already centrally purchasing some pharmaceuticals for them. According to the Director of General Health Insurance Company, Marcel Forai, the aim of central purchasing is saving. Central purchasing of laboratory tests should save approximately € 6-7 million in 2013. 

State insurance company started to revaluate the contracts with hospitals. In the half of next year it should know, where the contract will be signed and where will sing just with conditions. From January next year General Health Insurance Company (VšZP) will not make a contract with plastic surgery in Faculty hospital in Nitra. Four other departments in Nitra region have conditional contracts. Therefore they have to remove the inadequacies found by state insurance company until the half of a year. For now the management of insurance company dealt only with hospitals in Nitra region.

In case that Parliament adopts the act on expropriation of private health insurance companies, company Penta Investments will likely turn to Constitutional Court. This financial group, which is a shareholder of health insurance company Dôvera, according to its co-owner Martin Kúšik, does not have a good position in terms of arbitration or court action. He added, that policyholders will benefit the most from maintaining of competition in health insurance, as they will be able to choose, which service is most convenient for them. 

Medical trade unionists are against the creation of one health insurance company. They suggest that state should better give money assigned for buying of private health insurance companies for increasing of their salaries. They have declared this on Tuesday in front of the Government Office and brought the request for an early meeting with Prime Minister to the filling room. Prime Minister referred them on this issue to the Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská. Doctors expect from January also the third promised increasing of salaries. Government considers this as impossible. 

Association of Hospitals in Slovakia has agreed with General Health Insurance Company (Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa) on continuation of contractual relationship as well as on the price conditions until the end of June next year. As informed by the President of the Association, Marián Petko, insurance company accepted their proposal by the bed treatment, where the contractual prices will remain on the same level as in the second half of this year, including the resources from € 50 million reserve. 

Result of this year's insurance change campaign, according to the Association of Health Insurance Companies, approved that Slovak policyholder prefers the private insurance companies and the option. According to the President of the Association, the result of the campaign is a clear message to politicians, that policyholder does not agree with the intention of cancellation of private insurance companies. She pointed out that in absolute numbers the state insurance company had the worst result, as it has lost almost 20 000 policyholders. Government should, according to her, take this result into account and reconsider the whole intention of introducing of unitary system of public health insurance.

Results of this year's changing of insurance companies are already known. According to the information published by Healthcare Surveillance Authority the possibility to change the insurance company was used by more than 187 000 people. Numbers showed that only insurance company, which has profited on changing of insurance companies, was Union. Union reports almost 30 000 new policyholders. General Health Insurance Company has lost around 19 000 policyholders, Dôvera has reported minus 11 000 policyholders. 

Even the advertising campaign for € 420 000 did not help the General Health Insurance Company (Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa) to increase the number of policyholders. Conversely, after this year's changing of health insurance companies it has almost 19 000 policyholders less. These numbers were confirmed by the Healthcare Surveillance Authority. Just this year the insurance companies had a last chance to allure clients on their side and thereby increase their value before planned transition to one state insurance company. 

General Health Insurance Company (Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa) and Union Health Insurance Company have offered the small and medium hospitals associated in the Association of Hospitals in Slovakia the same payments for next year, as they are getting this year. While the proposal of General Health Insurance Company was accepted by the Association, the offer of Union has been refused and Association is waiting for the next proposal. This offer was allegedly disadvantageous, as the proposal in the frame of bed health care was allegedly lower than in 2012.