site.btaUPDATED Parliament Dismisses National Health Insurance Fund Chief

Bulgaria's Parliament voted on Wednesday to relieve of office the head of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), Stanimir Mihaylov. The vote was 116-56, with all votes "against" coming from Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) who had nominated Mihaylov for the NHIF position. Nobody abstained.

CC-DB said they would take the matter to the Constitutional Court.

Mihaylov was elected in late July and in November Parliament elected Momchil Mavrov, a GERB nominee, as NHIF Deputy Governor, causing a brief rift between the then power-sharing GERB-UDF and CC-DB. 

Citing personal reasons, Mihaylov tendered his resignation on on December 1, 2023 but it made it to Parliament's agenda only now.

The motion of Parliament Chair Rosen Zhelyazkov for debating the resignation inflamed CC-DB. As the MPs were debating, Vassil Pandov (CC-DB) said that Mihaylov had withdrawn his resignation and proposed that the item be dropped from Parliament's agenda and the debate be discontinued. He said that if the legislature wants to replace him anyway, they will have to think if a different reason.

Kostadin Angelov (GERB-UDF) said that Mihaylov must have been pressured to withdraw his resignation and said it was the mafia in action. He also said that he is the second office-holder after former Interior Ministry Secretary General Zhivko Kotsev to withdraw his resignation.

Hamid Hamid of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms said that the resignation had been added to the agenda and absolutely had to be voted. 

Stanislav Balabanov of There Is Such a People said that his group are not going to participate in this vote.

Miroslav Ivanov of CC-DB argued that a resignation is a personal act and can be withdrawn.

Assen Vassilev (CC-DB) suggested that Parliament take a break. The vote was taken after the break and Mihaylov was in the plenary hall. 

Later on Wednesday, NHIF said that its Supervisory Board has mandated its Vice Governor Momchil Mavrov to become acting governor until Parliament elects Mihaylov's successor.