The president of the Slovak Doctors' Chamber (SLK), Milan Dragula, on Thursday, November 3, requested that Slovak President Ivan Gašparovič halt the transformation of hospitals into joint-stock companies.
"If the resignations of the 2,400 doctors enter into force, Slovakia's health-care system will collapse... and I fear that some people may die. I begged Mr. President to halt the transformation until the election [in March], and propose different economic solutions that would maintain transparent economic policies for health-care facilities," said Dragula, as reported by the TASR newswire.
More than 2,400 hospital doctors submitted their resignations in late September in protest at the government's health-care reform plans, which include the transformation of hospitals. The resignations are due to come into force on December 1.
In response, Gašparovič said such a serious issue could not be decided at the drop of a hat. "Nobody knows what opinion the next government will have... I think that it's logical to put it off," he wrote on his website.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
