CEA and Hanza Media round table: Health system

05.09.2016.

Zagreb, 5 September 2016 – A panel discussion was held today organized by the Croatian Employers Association (HUP) and publisher Hanza Media at the premises of the CEA and as fourth in a series of roundtables on the eve of the upcoming elections titled "Health".

The discussion was held as part of the "Real questions" which were launched by editions Hanza media including Jutarnji list, Slobodna Dalmacija and Globus. As part of this project and based on the document "CEA's 7" which we presented to the public and headed the parliamentary parties at the press conference, there will be four round tables and final conference at which the employers and representatives of political parties to discuss possible solutions to the key problems limiting economic growth. "CEA's 7" is actually a selection of the highest priority among the "CEA's 16" key questions that we sent the parties on the eve of the previous elections. Then the parties did not give satisfactory, but only general answers about the ways in which they intended to solve the most important problems that hinder economic recovery and growth. Therefore, we re-sent our questions but now we chose among them those that we believe are of the highest priority and that need urgent attention right away in the first year of the mandate. Of course, we expect that and other questions in the coming years of the mandate because we believe that without it is not possible to achieve long-term, sustainable growth.
In the fourth panel discussion on the problems of the health care system in RH spoke Drago Prgomet, HDZ, Sinisa Varga, Narodna Koalicija, Ivan Bekavac, MOST Nezavisnih Lista and on behalf of CEA Marina Pulišić, JGL and Zoran Knezevic, Polyclinic Vita.

The first question the moderator Mark Biocina asked was related to waiting lists, where Drago Prgomet said: "All political parties insist that the health system is based on solidarity. Small countries and small nations must maintain the principle of solidarity on the issue of health care services. This means that you can't provide completely identical medical services to someone in Zagreb or in Baranja, but it is important to have an equal chance to get the same quality health service and this is what we seek to achieve. "

Main parties in the country can't agree on whether doctors from the public health sector should work in extra shifts in the private sector. Specifically, while the Most believe that doctors should be able to after regular work in offices must work and private, in the HDZ are against it, while the Narodna Koalicija, led by the SDP offered a compromise solution, which should satisfy even the defenders and opponents of dual labor solution.

- We need to allow doctors from public health work and private. Such a practice is, after all, normali n the other member states. Only China prohibits dual work of doctors - said Ivan Bekavac from the bridge, otherwise technically Deputy Minister of Health. He added that such a practice is in favor of the patients themselves because it reduces waiting lists and offers patients a choice.

- I am opposed to the dual work of doctors. It is not good to think about increasing the salary of doctors in a way that allows the private work. There are other ways that they can increase earnings - said Drago Prgomet, which represented HDZ.

On the other hand, Siniša Varga from the SDP, which at the round table represented the National Coalition, said that the doctors who, after doing their regular job, want some extra money could choose a compromise solution: - If the doctor does the tasks he is obligated to do and if you do not have a waiting list, then there is no reason that they are prevented from working in private sector as well - said Varga, a former SDP's health minister.

However, although the main parties in the country clearly can't agree about the dual work of doctors they nevertheless agree on individual basic settings of the health system. The general conclusion is that all the main parties advocate for universally accessible health care and health system based on solidarity. It was pointed out that we as a country have such obligations arising from the Croatian membership in the EU, whose health system is also based on the principles of solidarity and universality of service delivery. Of course, coverage of medical services covered by health insurance varies from country to country.

Zoran Knezevic from polyclinic Vita, CEA's president of the Association of private clinics, hospitals, spas and institutions for health care, agreed that waiting lists are not only specific for the Croatian health system. - Swedish health care is much more different from us, but waiting lists for MRI in it are no less than in Croatia - said Knezevic.
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