The amendment to Act No 578/2004 on healthcare providers, health workers, health professional organisations, amending also Law 341/2022, was approved today by Parliament in a shortened legislative procedure. The government approved the legislative change yesterday. The change of laws is intended to ensure the withdrawal of mass statements from doctors, but also to avoid a drop in interest in health studies, or to prevent health professionals from leaving the system and other states.
Vladimír Lengvarský, the Minister for Health, stated in connection with the amendment to the law that the negotiations were long and difficult, but the result is very positive: It is not possible to operate health care anywhere in the world without health professionals. I am glad that doctors will receive the salaries they deserve for their hard work and I firmly believe that the health situation will not only stabilise but also improve in the near future. Our doctors can not only withdraw statements, but get new motivation for even better results in caring for patients who should feel changes for the better soon.
What the amendment specifically brings:
1/ Doctors without specialization study who enter the profession in institutional health care facilities or ambulances of emergency health services after study, the basic coefficient increases from the current EUR 1.25 to EUR 1.50. By this factor the starting salary of the doctor after the study becomes a competitive V4 country. Untested doctor should increase salary by 0.015 times the average wage for each year of practice.
2/ The minimum wage coefficient of doctors tested will be 2.5 times the average wage from 1 January 2023. In addition, it should be increased by 0.025 times for 30 years according to the years of practice that have been worked. From 1 January 2025, the tested physician should increase the coefficient for years worked to 0.03 times the average wage for 30 years.
3/ The health care professional shall also be counted in the number of years worked for the medical profession to the extent of the educational attainment he has undertaken as a healthcare professional with a healthcare provider in another State, as well as the period of maternity leave or parental leave and the period of further maternity leave or other parental leave to a maximum of 6 years.
The Health Department will also continue to work on the implementation of seven points of the Memorandum signed on Wednesday by Prime Minister Eduard Heger and Minister of Health Vladimir Lengvarský with representatives of the Medical Trade Union Association and committed to preparing and implementing important reforms, changes and milestones in the way of significant improvement of healthcare provision in Slovakia.