Czech national authorities against covering patients' healthcare fees

2009-12-22

The Czech Ministry of Internal Affairs intends to revoke the regional authorities’ decision to cover patients’ healthcare fees, unless they abandon this practice voluntarily, Hospodarske Noviny reported. The regions governed by the opposition Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD) have stopped collecting patients' fees in regional healthcare facilities and pharmacies. Instead, the fees are covered from regional budgets in the form of “gifts to patients” – a practice at which the Ministry has been frowning upon. To date, the regions concerned have spent over CZK 340m (€12.9m) on patients’ fees. However, the regions governors have already come up with an idea on how to go about the Ministry’s ban, which most probably will be issued in January 2010. As Central Bohemia governor David Rath toldthe daily, instead of being paid by the regions, the fees will be covered directly by regional hospitals, which are administered and financed by regional authorities.
Currently Czech patients pay CZK 30 (€1.14) per doctor’s visit or per issued prescription and CZK 60 (€2.28) per one day of hospital stay.