A list of hospitals which will be grouped into a network will be announced on Tuesday as the government introduces a new system for healthcare funding in Poland.

Health Minister Konstanty Radziwiłł said the hospitals that will make the list have had contracts with the National Health Fund for two years and operate an emergency room. They will also be entitled to 93 percent of the fund’s budget.

According to the Gazeta Wyborcza daily, those healthcare facilities will be given lump sums of funding based on their earlier spending, guaranteed for four years.

Hospitals not included in the list, including many private medical centres, will have to compete for the rest of the health fund’s kitty.

Currently, each hospital and medical centre, including private facilities, many of which offer state-funded treatment alongside their private services, must compete for their share of funding from the National Health Fund. (vb/pk)

Source: IAR