Basic first aid, which does not require special equipment, may be provided by any person trained for this purpose, or by people without training acting on the instructions of emergency service professionals, in order to prevent complications and save lives until an intervention team arrives on the scene, says the bill.
Emergency care is provided outside hospitals by ambulance services authorized by the Ministry of Health and by the teams of the Mobile Emergency, Resuscitation and Extrication Service (SMURD), within the local Emergency Inspectorates, local authorities and hospitals recognized by order of the Minister of Health.
Emergency care is coordinated by special dispatch departments, using the infrastructure of the single national emergency call system.
Hospitals provide emergency care through specialized wards, authorized regularly by the Ministry of Health.
The structures and medical services that make up the national emergency care system, including hospital emergency wards, are financed from the state budget, local budgets and other sources, according to an order of the Minister of Health.
Medical service providers may purchase equipment, vehicles and other intervention resources directly, through leasing or loans, financed from their own income and/or the state budget, as well as from other sources allowed by law, including donations and sponsorships.
The organization and operation of the national emergency care system will be regulated through a Government decision, proposed by the Ministry of Health, within 30 days of the law entering force.
The bill prohibits hospital and field emergency personnel from taking part in strikes or other such action during their working hours, which may lead to a lower intervention capacity or lower quality care.
Secondary legislation issued on the basis of Law 95/2006, with subsequent amendments, shall remain in force as long as it does not conflict with the chapter “National emergency care and first aid system” of the new bill.
The new healthcare bill was put up for public debate Wednesday on the Health Ministry’s website, www.ms.ro. Suggestions may be sent in for ten days, but the bill’s text will remain online until January 28, 2012.