ZAGREB, March 30 (Hina) - Croatian Health and Social Care Minister Andrija Hebrang said on Tuesday that this year would be very difficult for the health services, but that patients would not be affected.
ZAGREB, March 30 (Hina) - Croatian Health and Social Care Minister
Andrija Hebrang said on Tuesday that this year would be very difficult
for the health services, but that patients would not be affected.#L#
Stjepan Bacic, head of the Health Insurance Agency's management board,
who addressed reporters with Hebrang, said that hospitals spent 7.5
billion kuna last year, while this year's budgetary funds for
hospitals totalled six billion kuna.
The Agency's financial obligations towards hospitals total 2.9 billion
kuna, plus 520 million from this year's first three months.
The Agency's management board has decided not to cover the costs of
hospital services which exceed hospital budgets, which total some 340
million kuna, Bacic said.
He also said that hospital budgets would be adjusted in April and that
some clinics that introduced new methods of treatment would be given
bigger budgets.
However, the budgets of those hospitals which in 2003 provided less
services than envisaged by their budgets, will remain the same because
otherwise they would not be able to pay salaries to their employees,
he added.
A total of 680,000 people were treated in Croatian hospitals last
year, Bacic said, adding that hospitals would have to reduce
admissions and focus on emergency services.
(Hina) rml