Dear Healthcare committee Members,
This a needed report of the activities that our committee undertook till February 9th, 2022
Ministry of Healthcare
On 31.01.2022 a meeting was held with the Ministry of Health (MoH) aiming to both organizations to share their priorities. Another objective was to initiate a discussion on the upcoming important topics for Healthcare Committee (HCC), and to find intersections through which the Chamber can cooperate with the MoH and participate with expertise for future actions for the development of proposals for policies and initiatives for the benefit of healthcare in the country.
As very positive outcome of the meeting was the possible collaboration between AmCham and the MoH in the following directions:
- Improving efficiency in hospital care and correcting the imbalance in the valuation of clinical pathways, with a focus on the pilot introduction of new funding mechanisms.
- Public financial control of hospital facilities using public resources, as well as re-examine and update of the health card.
- Digital Healthcare
- National Mental Health Strategy
The AmCham Bulgaria “Healthcare as an investment” Report 2021 is endorsed by the German-Bulgarian Industrial and Trade Chamber and the Bulgarian-Swiss Chamber of Commerce. A meeting between the Minister of Health and the leadership of the American-, German-, and Swiss- Chambers will follow to enhance the communication.
Position on 2022 NHIF Budget
AmCham Bulgaria is following all activities and development of the process of elaboration of the Budget Law for Healthcare, including the 2022 Budget of the National Health Insurance Fund. The Chamber submitted a Position on 2022 NHIF Budget for Medicines, which is part of our common efforts to support predictability in the planning in both the NHIF and the pharmaceutical companies to provide access to quality treatment and to deliver medicine to the Bulgarian patients. We believe that 2022 Health Budget needs to reflect real needs and spending in the healthcare system without harming the supplies and business.
Bilateral Chambers’ Joint Healthcare Efforts
On February 8th, the leadership of the Healthcare bodies of AmCham Bulgaria, German-Bulgarian Chamber, and the Bulgarian-Swiss Chamber discussed the joint next steps in fostering the collaboration between the three organizations and the MoH. Such a meeting restarted the joint coordination efforts that started back in 2020.
The next meeting of the HC Committee is planned for the first half of March. News about the exact date and time of the meeting will follow!
Sincerely yours,
AmCham Healthcare Committee Leadership
Read the in-detail report of the advocacy activities of HC Committee, Feb 9th, 2022