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Tag: health insurance companies
Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) and representatives of outpatient doctors has agreed on the form of new contract. This should be according to the conditions of legislation valid for 12 months, price quotations is, however, made only for 6 months. Doctors want to negotiate on its amount again. Based on the agreement the general practitioners will get from insurance company the increasing of payments by 8%. The payments of specialists should be increased by 5%. Agreement also assumes the increasing of the point for prevention.
Net profit of private health insurance company Dôvera last year reached the amount of € 39 million, what means 4% of its total turnover. Preliminary estimates of Healthcare Surveillance Authority (HSA) in March predicted the profit of fewer than € 10 million. The difference was reportedly due to the fact that Office did not have the definite accounting balance in that time. This was allegedly delivered to Office yesterday. Insurance company allegedly reached this profit thanks to the savings on operating costs and from the exaction of old debts.
Representatives of outpatient doctors again failed to agree with Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) on signing of the amendments to the contracts. Representatives of doctors refused to accept the 8% increasing of payments of insurance company for the medical performances from July. Insurance company started the negotiations on the level of 6.5%. If doctors accept the newest offer, it would mean the increasing by 15% compared to 2011 and for average outpatient clinic it would mean monthly € 200 more.
According to Minister Zvolenská, the offer of Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) is four times higher than the annual percentage increasing of payments for providing of health care offered before. Doctors, however, still consider it as inadequate and are asking VšZP to add them 20%. Minister considers the claims of representatives of doctors as excessive. In addition, the offer of state insurance company is according to her information comparable with the offers of other health insurance companies.
The Prime Minister Robert Fico wants to hurry with the buy-out of private health insurance companies. They should be replaced by one state health insurance company. Prime Minister also informed that insurance company Dôvera did not refuse the negotiations on this issue. Strongly against it is Union Health Insurance Company. Vision outlined by R. Fico will according to Union not bring the savings of public resources. Prime Minister justified his intention by the fact, that private health insurance companies are taking from public resources in the time, when Government is seeking for reserves to consolidate the public finances.
Doctors still have not completed the negotiations with Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company). Both sides presented at today's joint negotiation their compromise proposals, but refused to informed about them. According to the President of Slovak Medical Chamber, Marian Kollár, they will now evaluate the compromise. Outpatient care doctors represented by Slovak Medical Chamber, Zdravita o.z., as well as the Association of General Practitioners for Children and Adolescents therefore continue to remain in non-contract relationship.
Insurance company Dôvera has signed the contracts with all university, faculty, regional and specialised health care institutions. Policyholders waiting for the planned operation may thus enter the hospitals. Part of the new contracts was also the dissolution of state reserve between providers. Hospitals will draw the reserve from July until the end of this year. It should cover the wage claims of nurses and doctors.
According to Prime Minister Robert Fico the state will have to handle with private health insurance companies while the solution might, according to him, be a one insurance company. He does not like that in time when state is looking for resources for salaries of nurses and doctors owners of private health insurance companies have high profits. According to Prime Minister, by creation of one insurance company it would not be a violent expropriation, as there is an option of purchasing of shares.
Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company) will operate with another € 17 million. This will be enabled by the amendment to the Act on Health Insurance approved by Parliament last week. Legal standard newly defines the reporting of solvency of health insurance companies and abolishes the capital ratio and ratio of short-term obligations and liabilities. From July 1st only one solvency criterion is required: insurance company has to fulfill its obligations to providers within 30 calendar days from the day of maturity of liabilities.
Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance company) suspects outpatient doctors - who announced that if they do not get more money, they will not sign the new contracts - from cartel agreement and prepares the suggestion to the Antimonopoly Office. VšZP started to send doctors the amendments with increased prices before the end of validity of current contract and believes that they will face the proposal correctly and responsibly. According to the VšZP, even the possible mandate contract for representation does not exempt doctors from the possibility to decide. Doctors, according to the VšZP, may sign the amendment separately, regardless to the decision of their professional organizations.
