Romanian Family Doctors Call Off Protests

Romanian family doctors said Tuesday, following talks with the country’s health minister Ion Bazac and the head of the National Health Insurance House (CNAS), that they would call off protests scheduled Wednesday through Friday, after they found a way to assign reasonable funds for primary medical assistance.

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The representatives of the National Family Medicine Society (SNMF) said they are not so pleased with the funds they obtained Tuesday for the first quarter of the year, but added that they are well aware they will have to make do with an austerity budget this year. Moreover, they said the budget earmarked for primary medical assistance would cover the costs of medical units.

The Family Medicine Society head, Rodica Tanasescu, said that, unlike 2008, the value of the point "per capita" and "per service" has lowered within the limit of an austerity budget, namely, to 4.1 "per capita" from 4.61 and to 1.5 "per service" from 1.9.

Bazac said Tuesday at the end of talks that the lack of communication has led to conflicts lately, adding that he hopes the future budget revision would bring more money for primary medical assistance.

Family doctors started Monday to submit their requests for medical leave from Wednesday to Friday, as an act of protest against the 2009 budget assigned to the sector.

The health committees of the two chambers of Parliament approved last Wednesday the budget allotted to the Ministry of Health for 2009. Bazac said the budget is 0.2% higher than last year and he hopes to receive more money at a future budget revision.

Family doctors announced in a press statement last week that they are unhappy with the funds assigned to primary medical assistance and requested that at the least, the budget be kept at 2008’s level, in order to avoid driving practices to bankruptcy.

The Family Medicine Society and the National Family Doctors’ Employers Association (PNMF) claimed, in a common statement, that the funds allotted to primary medical assistance are 40.69% lower than in 2008, and the reduction is “the most drastic” among all other segments in the healthcare system and the entire state budget.

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