Filenews 8 February 2024
Citizens complain about the charges of their personal doctors, while complaints about the calculation of telephone communication as a visit are becoming more and more numerous every day.
As a representative of the office of the Commissioner for the Supervision of the GHS told the Parliament's Health Committee, several citizens also complain about the fact that once telephone communication is registered as a visit, then when the number of visits they are entitled to per year is reached (depending on their age), their personal doctors charge them and pay out of pocket when they finally need to visit their doctor.
The complaints, as the spokeswoman of the supervisory commissioner said, "are increasing and there is no provision clarifying who is defined as a 'chronic patient' so that they are exempted from the restriction of visits as defined by law."
As a result, chronic patients, who need to make frequent visits to their personal doctors, are obliged, if their doctor deems it appropriate, to pay out of pocket.
During the meeting, doctors' representatives clarified that charges are not made by the majority of personal doctors, although their regulations allow it.
The HIO claims that no complaints have been recorded by the organization about charges of beneficiaries by personal doctors, but it was reported that regulation is being promoted so that telephone communication is recorded in the software as such and not as a normal visit.
