Filenews 17 June 2025 - by Marilena Panagi
A GHS doctor charged patients €800 – €1400 for consumables he used during surgical operations without having previously submitted a request to the Health Insurance Organization for the provision of these consumables.
The Health Insurance Organization monitored his actions and after confirming, preliminarily, the information that reached him, informed the doctor yesterday about the suspension of the validity of his contract with the Organization.
Specifically, a doctor, according to the information presented to the HIO, subjected his patients to surgical procedures, using consumables that are not included in the relevant lists of consumables of the GHS. His patients were informed about the use of these consumables and paid him the cost, which amounted to €800 – €1400, depending on the case.
Relevant complaints reached the HIO and the Organization proceeded to a preliminary investigation from which it emerged that the doctor was indeed carrying out the specific act.
As the director of the HIO, Konstantinos Panagidis, explained to "F", "when a consumable is not included in the "Z" list of the GHS, the doctor has the right to submit a request to the Organization to consider its inclusion, while a request can also be submitted by the company that supplies the consumables to the doctor".
In this case, Mr. Panagidis said, "neither the doctor nor the importing company ever submitted a request to the HIO for the inclusion of the specific consumables in the relevant list, which makes the act and especially the charging of patients/beneficiaries of the GHS out of the legislation."
The doctor, said the director of the HIO, was informed yesterday about the decision taken regarding the suspension of the validity of his contract with the Organization "as well as the fact that an investigation officer will be appointed who will proceed to a more detailed investigation of the data".
In this regard, "the hospitals with which the doctor collaborates were also informed, since until the completion of the investigation he cannot offer services within the General Health System".
