State Budget Use of Insurance Funds Ruled Illegal in Bulgaria

Health | July 5, 2012, Thursday // 15:25|  views

The idea of redirecting health insurance funds to the State budget was the brainchild of Finance Minister, Simeon Djankov. Photo by BGNES

Redirecting health insurance funds to the State budget violates the Constitution of Bulgaria, the Constitutional Court has ruled.

The supreme magistrates declared unconstitutional the text in the Act for the Budget of  the National Health Insurance Fund, NZOK, allowing the Health Ministry to cover expenses for medical activities, medications and medical supplies by using money from NZOK.

BGN 100 M in 2012 and 340 M in 2011 have already been transferred from NZOK to the Health Ministry, Dnevnik daily writes.

The rule has been signed by 12 judges, but 5 of them have stated a "dissenting opinion."

The idea was the brainchild of Finance Minister, Simeon Djankov, who aimed at saving funds in the State budget by subsidizing the Health Ministry with money from health insurance contributions.

The opposition countered in debates that there were no guarantees whatsoever that the said money will be spent only for health insured patients. The MPs who filed the claim insist that this is an unconstitutional "confiscation of part of the resources of NZOK" with BGN millions given to the Executive Power represented by the Health Ministry, which is financed by the State budget. According to them, this means that the NZOK budget finances the State budget, which they deem unacceptable.

The magistrates have now rules that the text is in contradiction with the rule of law and the Constitution because the Executive Power is mandated to be subordinate in order to guarantee the predictability of its actions.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!


Tags: Coalition for Bulgaria, DPS, executive power, NZOK, Constitutional Court, Health Ministry, Simeon Djankov, finance minister, state budget, health insurance funds, constitution

Back  

» Related Articles:

Search

Search