Introduction
Health legislation is the set of all legal regulative documents which control the variety of healthcare system relations. This topic covers its functions and principles, the role of the Ministry of Health, health establishments and their financing, and the Health Care Establishments Act (1999), which settles the structure and activity of medical establishments in Bulgaria.
Health legislation in Bulgaria
- Functions: organisation and protection (of patients, hospital attendants etc.).
- Principles:
- Right to medical help
- Right to personal freedom and to taking decisions
- Respect of human dignity
- The Ministry of Health is responsible for national health policy and the overall organisation and functioning of the health system, and coordinates with all ministries with relevance to public health.
Health establishments
Article 21 states:
- Health establishments are structures of the national system of health care in which medical and non-medical specialists carry out activities related to preservation and building-up of the health of citizens.
- Health establishments in the meaning of the law are:
- National centres for the problems of the public health
- National Expert Physician Commission
- Health consulting rooms under Art. 26
Sources of financing
- National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF)
- Republican and municipal budget
- Voluntary Health Insurance Funds (VHICs)
- Local and foreign corporate bodies and individuals
Organisation of care
- All primary, and the majority of specialised, outpatient facilities are privately owned.
- Inpatient care is delivered mainly through a network of public and private hospitals, divided into multi-profile and specialised hospitals.
- There are also other inpatient health care establishments such as comprehensive cancer centres, centres for dermato-venereal diseases and hospices.
- The relatively high hospitalisation rate reflects the underutilisation of ambulatory care services and the lack of integration and coordination of different levels of care.