Health cards have become operational in Romania
Health cards have become operational in Romania
Health cards have become operational in Romania but problems have not been late to appear. Hundreds of thousands of people have not yet received the card while those who have, spend a lot of time in the family doctor’s practices for the cards to be active
Meant to streamline the medical assistance process in Romania, the health cards system, implemented as of May 1st, has for the moment simply turned things upside down. The technology behind the system seems to have failed its mission and consultations are prolonged due to the problems encountered by doctors upon activating the card.
The vice-president of the National Family Medicine Society, Sandra Alexiu, explains the situation: “For the patients who did not have the cards activated, the activation process has been extremely difficult, and in most cases it has failed. While those who had already had their cards activated had to spend a lot of time in the doctor’s practice due to system errors. So a 15-minute consultation was extended up to an hour.” The president of the National Health Insurance House, Vasile Ciurchea, says that using the health card does not block the IT system but simply delays the system response. He estimates problems will be solved in 2 weeks at the most. Vasile Ciurchea: “We will use the cards at all costs. As long as we provide services, the card needs to be used. The system has a delayed response, I understand that everybody is angry with the situation, but providers need to understand that their services will be eventually reimbursed.” Medical services are also provided to those who do not have a health card yet, Vasile Ciurchea added.
The National Health Insurance House president called on the medical service providers and patients alike to try to understand the importance of implementing that system. Vasile Ciurchea: “If you have a card, you use it. If you don’t have a card, for no matter what reason, and you need a medical service, you will receive it, and this service will be subsequently reimbursed to providers. Children do not need a card. And in pharmacies one can also use the card or the data in one’s ID card.” Vasile Ciurchea added that those who do not observe the legal provisions related to health cards risked sanctions, such as warnings and even the termination of the contract with the National Health Insurance House
