site.btaParliament Debates First No-Confidence Motion against Government over Health Care Policy

Parliament Debates First No-Confidence Motion against Government over Health Care Policy

Sofia, February 18 (BTA) - Parliament is debating Wednesday the first motion for a vote of no-confidence against this government of Boyko Borissov over its policy in the health care sector. The motion was initiated by 69 MPs of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) - Left Bulgaria, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) and two independents.

The debates are held in the presence of government ministers but the Prime Minister is not there.

The majority voted down a motion to have the debates broadcast live by the Bulgarian National Television and the National Radio.
   
The vote will be taken no later than 24 hours from the completion of debates.

The motives

In their motives to the motion, the Socialists, MRF and the two independents wrote that in the past year the government and the Health Minister have undertaken unprincipled and meaningless decisions showing a lack of a systematic approach, and this has brought about a chaos in the health sector and obstructed people's access to health care. As examples of such steps they mention revisions in the  Health Insurance Act and the Medical Treatment Establishments Act, which are being challenged before the Constitutional Court.

"Financial caps and inadequate funding of the health care system have brought about an unprecedented situation in which medical establishments are unable to provide services. The health care system is destabilized. The ambition of the government
and the Health Minister in particular is to see a zero deficit in the 2015 health care budget," the reasoning goes.

The authors argue that what they call "the scandal with the unlawful import of vaccines lacking approval for sale in the EU" has had a particularly negative response among Bulgarian people and the Minister should have taken responsibility for this immediately.

They refer to recent allegations that vaccines for infants were imported from Turkey without the requisite clearance but the Health Minister argued that the deal was in keeping with the law and helped prevent a shortage of vaccines.

"The arrogant behaviour of the Health Minister, his populism and incompetence are possible due to the support of the whole ruling majority, the government and especially the Prime Minister," said Socialist MP Zhelyo Boychev as he read out the motives in the debating chamber.

Democrats for Strong Bulgaria

Addressing the legislature, Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) leader Radan Kanev said that his party cannot be expected to back the motion.

Moskov was a deputy leader of DSB before Kanev pulled out his support for the Borissov government and went into opposition, and he had to chose whether or not to go along. He chose to remain Health Minister and give up the deputy leader's office at DSB.
 
"If you want to attack Right-wing ministers, you have to talk to the people who have declared themselves as balancing factors in this Parliament: our colleagues from GERB," Kanev said. Turning to the opposition, he said: "You managed to get rid of [former Justice Minister] Hristo Ivanov and if you want to get rid of Peter Moskov, you need GERB to do it with, not us."

Kanev said that the no-confidence motion crowned three-week efforts to sweep under the carpet the catastrophe with the failed judicial reform.

MRF

Touncher Kurdjaliev (MRF) said that the Health Minister's stable positions are not due to his competence or potential to carry through reforms but due to the fact that he enjoys the protection of Boyko Borissov. As soon as the Prime Minister withdraws his protection, he will go, Kurdjaliev observed.
 
There is an imitation of reforms in the healthcare sector, MRF MP Hasan Ademov said.    The Minister has lead the health system to chaos with unforeseen consequences. Bulgarian doctors are forced to act as sole traders and hospitals' obligations amount to 500 million leva, Ademov continued. In his opinion, the National Health Map will cause excessive concentration of power in the administration.

In his view, the complex health services are not a matter of hospital beds, buildings and territories but a matter of organization. People who do not suffer from a socially significant disease, lose motivation to pay health insurance, said Ademov. "The health insurance system is certain to collapse without confidence. What we are proposed is not a health reform but pursuit of financial goals," he noted.

The alternative offered by MRF is demonopolization of NHIF, providing patients with broad right of free choice, competition, market relations, alternative sources of financing and efficient use of the available resource.

BSP

BSP leader Mihail Mikov said DSB are "accomplices causing this stalemate in healthcare". "Whatever you say to the people, they would have difficulties to recognize you as opposition given that you support this Government," said Mikov.    

GERB

Semir Abu Melih (GERB) urged DSB to speak up for their party fellow Peter Moskov. "This no-confidence vote is a result of your actions - your going into 'opposition'. Your minister remained a 'political orphan' and we have gathered here to defend him," Melih said further. He said further that this is not the policy of GERB, which only has a supporting role.

He urged DSB not to use the Bulgarian healthcare in their election campaign. "The discussions should have been more technical, so that certain truths would have been said to allow the health reform to go into the right direction," he added.

Melih, however, voiced the opinion that Moskov has the energy and the will to carry out reforms.