The Health Ministry has announced the healthcare bill is up for public debate on www.ms.ro as of December 28.
The bill has 16 chapters: Public health; National healthcare programs; Primary care; Outpatient healthcare; National emergency care and first aid system; Hospitals; Medicine and pharmaceutical assistance; Human organ, tissue and cell donations and use; Healthcare system personnel; Civil liability of medical personnel and of medical/ pharmaceutical product and service providers; Social health insurance; European card and national health card; Voluntary health insurance; Financing for healthcare expenses; Quality and information in the healthcare system; Transitional and final provisions.
The new healthcare legislation introduces private health insurance houses as an additional link between the National Health Insurance House and medical service providers. It also creates the legal framework allowing local authorities to employ a doctor directly in areas where the healthcare system faces difficulties. The doctor will be supported by a multidisciplinary team, built around social workers and public health mediators.
The act also makes changes to the use of resources allocated to pharmaceuticals, as well as the quality of medical services, with a view to making these fields more efficient. It proposes the creation of an agency for healthcare information and quality, coordinated by the Health Ministry.
The bill was developed with the participation of healthcare professionals, members of the Presidential Commission, Health Ministry and National Health Insurance House. Suggestions may be sent in for the next ten days, but the bill’s text will remain online until January 28, 2012.