Pavlo Kovtoniuk: All primary care facilities should have independent management and sign agreements with NHSU by the end of 2018

By the end of 2018, all healthcare facilities should be reorganized and switch to independent management as non-profit enterprises owned by local government, and primary care providers should sign contracts with the National Health Service of Ukraine (NHSU). “This is the key objective for local authorities”, underlined Pavlo Kovtoniuk, Deputy Minister of Health of Ukraine,  during “an Hour of Questions to the Government” at Ukrainian Parliament on June 22, 2018.

"Today, it is very important for the regions to mobilize their efforts. Our goal is to ensure that all primary care facilities sign contracts with the National Health Service of Ukraine and start receiving financing under the "money follows the patient" principle before 2019. The first thing the local authorities need to do is to ensure reorganization of all healthcare facilities by the end of 2018, pursuant to Law No. 2002-8 On Autonomization. This law stipulates that a special simplified reorganization procedure is in effect only by the end of the year", commented Pavlo Kovtoniuk.

Over 9.5 million Ukrainians have chosen their doctors in the the first two and a half months since the launch of the national campaign – "A Doctor for Every Family". This is an excellent example that demonstrates that both doctors and patients want and support the ongoing transformation of the healthcare system.

Currently, Vinnytsia (41%), Poltava (35.3%), Kharkiv (35%), Chernivtsi (29.3%), and Zhytomyr (28.3%) oblasts are the national leaders in the number of declarations signed with the chosen doctor.

The lowest numbers of declarations are registered in Sumy (10%), Zakarpattia (14.4%), Cherkasy (15.2%), Odesa (15.5%) and Zaporizhzhia (16%) oblasts.

"The leaders of the regions-outsiders in the "A Doctor for Every Family" campaign should realize that this situation deprives their doctors of higher income, and people – of quality care", emphasized Pavlo Kovtoniuk.