[size=75:1509qop3]Dnevnik 7 April 2010

Mandatory Health Card to sift out Bulgarian hospitals

he national health insurance card will become obligatory and the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) will only work with hospitals covered by the scheme, according to legislative amendments to be tabled in Parliament by ruling party GERB.

The health card lays out the number and type of hospitals and doctors needed by the Bulgarian healthcare system.

Representatives of the regional healthcare centres, the regional health insurance funds and municipal authorities have banged their heads together to develop regional health insurance cards on which the national card will be modeled.

The Ministry of Health threw its weight behind the proposal to introduce a mandatory health insurance card.

The proposal is being discussed within GERB and has not been submitted in Parliament, said parliamentary healthcare committee chair Lachezar Ivanov. He explained the card should include all hospitals matching the treatment standards for the different illnesses that have the necessary medical equipment and staff. They will be allowed to sign contracts with the NHIF.

On the other hand, the Bulgarian Medical Association (BMA) opposed the idea for an obligatory health insurance card. BMA chairman Tsvetan Raychinov told Dnevnik it should not be forced upon private hospitals, which should only be required to fulfill certain standards.