Filenews 31 August 2023 - by Marilena Panayi
The government has taken its decisions and they appear to be final. Patient missions abroad will soon be included in the GHS and, as the President of the Republic himself, Nikos Christodoulides, explained in statements to "F", only a small part of the program currently implemented will remain in the Ministry of Health.
Specifically, and according to the President of the Republic, "the program, which is currently under the responsibility of the Ministry of Health, will be transferred, as far as GHS beneficiaries are concerned, i.e. for the most part, to the Health Insurance Organisation and to the Ministry of Health will remain the part that concerns non-GHS beneficiaries and to cover very-very urgent cases that will need immediate handling."
The Minister of Health, Popi Kanari, explained to "F" the procedures that will be promoted in the coming period, saying that at the moment the government "expects the HIO to prepare its timetables to promote the procedures" and at the same time, she added "we as a Ministry, since we have these timetables in our hands, will promote our own procedures to make possible the transfer of experienced officers of the Ministry of Health. who have been working on the subject for years, at the HIO".
It is a fact, Kanari admitted, "that the HIO, at the moment and without having the know-how it needs, cannot carry out such a program. For this reason, we understand the condition they have set by asking us for this know-how that our own officers have. We asked for timetables in order to make a proper planning and promote all the procedures that need to be done so that patient missions abroad can be included in the GHS, as stipulated by the relevant legislation".
Asked about the reasons that led to the change of the previous political decision based on which this program remained with the Ministry of Health, Ms. Kanari said that "when this political decision was taken, the facts were different. We were in the middle of a pandemic, things had not matured in the GHS. Now, we have very different facts ahead of us and it's time for these services to join the GHS as well. That is why we, as a Ministry, have raised this issue with the HIO since the beginning of August. I have to say that they were very positive about this prospect and we are now moving forward. We will give them the know-how they need and I believe that with this support their work will not be so difficult afterwards."
The positive attitude of the HIO was confirmed to "F" by the deputy director general of the organization, Athos Tsinontidis. "As an organization we have advanced and almost completed the integration of services into the GHS. In fact, those that remain outside the GHS are some issues that until now have been managed by the Ministry of Health and little by little we must begin to take over. One of these pending issues is the sending of patients abroad and this is something that the legislation stipulates that the HIO must undertake. We have spoken with the Minister of Health and everything necessary to transfer the program to the organization will be promoted."
Asked to comment on some concerns expressed by the Audit Office on whether the HIO will be able to carry out such a large task at a time when the GHS continues to present abuses and problems, Mr. Tsinontidis said that "there are certainly problems, but the HIO does not stop working to resolve them. At the same time, we cannot nullify the enormous work that the organization has produced to date and the services it offers to citizens. The services offered to GHS beneficiaries are what we focus on."
The inclusion in the GHS of sending patients abroad was a request of the Federation of Cyprus Patients' Associations which, it is recalled, took a public position on this issue a fortnight ago. As stated yesterday by the president of OSAC, Charalambos Papadopoulos, "our position is that the HIO must implement in its entirety the legislation governing the operation of the GHS. If the government is of the same opinion, then the processes must proceed without delay."
