The Parliament Has Adopted the Healthcare Reform

On October 19^th, 2017 the Parliament voted for 3 draft laws that are part of the medical reform:

1. The draft law "On State Financial Guarantees for the Provision of Medical Services and Medicines" No. 6327 as of April 10^th, 2017 (adopted wholly);

2. The draft law "On Amendments to the Budget Code of Ukraine on Providing State Financial Guarantees for the Provision of Medical Services and Medicines” No. 6604 as of June 21^st, 2017 (adopted in the first reading)

3. The draft law "On Increasing Accessibility and Quality of Medical Care in Rural Areas" (adopted in the first reading) No. 7117 as of September 18^th, 2017.

The issue of reforming the healthcare sector is complex and affects a lot of aspects of healthcare. These draft laws concern the spheres of financing of medical care, in particular, the introduction of a state guaranteed package of medical services and medicines, the creation of the National Healthcare Service of Ukraine as the only customer for medical services, the reform of the primary healthcare system and the introduction of electronic patient records.

Primary healthcare system reform provides that patients will exercise their right to choose a family doctor by submitting to the medical services provider a declaration on the choice of a doctor who provides first medical aid.

The ideology of the medical reform is that the healthcare will be financed on a contractual basis. That is, healthcare institutions will receive money for specific services provided to specific patients. Financing the number of places in hospitals now will be substituted by the principle "money follows the patient".

The draft law introduces the concept of the program of state guarantees for medical services to the population, according to which the state pays fully from the state budget of Ukraine. Such a list includes primary, emergency and palliative care. It is worth noting that when reviewing the draft, the Parliament excluded option of co-payment for medical services by patients. At the same time, before making conclusions, we should wait for the final text of the law after its signing by the President of Ukraine.

Special attention is paid to reforming rural medicine - this is the focus of the draft law initiated by the President of Ukraine. The document envisages the introduction of telemedicine in Ukraine, which is intended to simplify the diagnosis in those cases when not a personal examination is needed, but rather an evaluation of the examination data.

In addition, the draft addresses the social issues of healthcare professionals. Thus, local authorities are recommended to develop and approve programs to provide healthcare professionals working in rural areas with official housing and office vehicles. The government is invited to take measures to ensure access of healthcare institutions in rural areas to the Internet. Commenting on this draft law, President P. Poroshenko said that the budget has at least UAH 5 billion of additional funding for medicine in rural areas for 2 years.

Let us remind you that in the spring, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the Law of Ukraine "On Amendments to Some Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding the Improvement of Legislation on the Activities of Healthcare Institutions" No. 2002-VIII as of April 6^th, 2017 which was the first step in the medical reform. This act provides for a simplified procedure for the reorganization of public healthcare institutions - state and municipal institutions - into state enterprises and municipal non-profit enterprises.