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Tag: legislation
Representatives of Medical Trade Union are asking the Government for the legislation guarantee of the third increasing of salaries from January 1, 2013. They are, for all that, not against the dividing of third increasing of salaries for longer period of time. According to the head of the Medical Trade Union, they insist on the legislation guaranty. Problem is, according to him, unreal conditions of Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská, which should go along with this increasing.
Ministry of Health wants firstly discuss on the project of one health insurance company with the Economic and Social Council and after that it will submit it to the Government. Government should have, according to the schedule made by Ministry of Health, decided on the project already last week. Despite this slip Ministry claims that dates of implementation of unitary system of public health insurance are not threatened.
Private outpatient clinics and hospitals joined the critique of implementation of one insurance company. Only one insurance company should, according to the estimations of the Ministry of Health, begin to work already in 2014. Private doctors and hospitals are afraid that one state insurance company will prefer public hospitals and outpatient clinics. According to the head of the Association of Private Doctors, Ladislav Pásztor, for them it means a loss of sharing of the risk.
Nurses could imagine the solution of the situation, which has occurred regarding the act on their minimum wages, also by creation of new legislation measure. This proposal was presented by Slovak Chamber of Nurses and Midwives on the meeting with Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská. According to the President of the Chamber, Mária Lévyová, it could be a governmental or parliamentary proposal. Ministry is supposed to send nurses its written statement.
If private health insurance companies will agree with state on their out-buying, there is a real risk that it would be at a price higher than their current market value. This was claimed by the Ministry of Justice led by Tomáš Borec. Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská claims that this is only a presumption, which may not be confirmed. Ministry of Justice in the comments on the project of implementation of unitary system of public health insurance warned also of the potential risk of non-compliance with European or Constitutional law.
Proposal of the proceeding of merging of health insurance companies will come on Wednesday to Government without any major changes. Government will on Wednesday decide, whether Minister of Health Zuzana Zvolenská should continue in the plan of creation of one health insurance company until the summer 2014 or not. Her colleagues did not announce any objections against this plan, the objections in commentary proceeding were submitted especially by private health insurance companies. They tried to doubt the claim that if there would be only one insurance company in the market, there will be more money for health care.
If political party Smer implement the project of one health insurance company, it would be the biggest rubbery on citizens in the history of Slovak healthcare system. This was claimed by the former Minister of Health Ivan Uhliarik. He does not like that social democrats are planning to spend the money of tax payers on payments for shareholders of private health insurance companies. System of one health insurance company will according to him mean that state will pay hundreds of millions of euros to the shareholders of private health insurance companies instead of investing this money in hospitals, healthcare professionals or patients.
Pharmacy network Dr. Max answers to the effort of the Ministry of Health to cancel the loyalty systems with the advertising campaign, which promotes them. Dr. Max is doing this in the time, when cancelling of loyalty system was already approved by the Government. Company Mirakl, the provider of Dr. Max pharmacies, believes that members of Parliament will consider and evaluate the arguments for and against remaining of loyalty systems and loyalty systems will be maintained. They, however, see the sense in promotion, as even if the ban of loyalty systems is passed, it would only apply to the prescription pharmaceuticals.
Surcharges of patients for some pharmaceuticals, which have increased after implementing of so called clustering of pharmaceuticals, should decrease next year. Ministry of Health has submitted the proposal of the change of Decree, which adjusts the way of determination of particular clusters. Payment for pharmaceutical should also not be set only by the cheapest one in the group, but it should also be the second or third one.
Slovakia is still threatened by high penalties in two arbitrations and also in domestic courts. Disputes initiated by the owners of private health insurance companies due to ban of the profit are currently being solved by international tribunals. Courts are dealing with € 196 million for shareholders of Union health insurance company and former Apollo health insurance company. Slovak courts are solving also other disputes for totally € 688.8 million of taxpayers' money.
