BRATISLAVA, November 30, (WEBNOVINY) — The amending proposal for increase in health insurance payments for state policyholders has eventually not been passed. None of the KDH deputies supported the motion, which initially made the proposal that was tabled in the form of an indirect revision through an amendment of the law on road transport. Based on the proposal, payments for state policyholders were to increase from originally suggested 4 percent to 4.37 percent of the assessment base.
Finance Minister Ivan Miklos threatened on Tuesday that if such amending proposal increasing the general government deficit above the agreed 4.6 percent of GDP was passed, he would withdraw the draft budget from the parliament and Slovakia would operate under a provisional budget regime next year, which, if applied all year long, would cause a deficit equal 4.4-percent of GDP. I will not allow ruining public finances during these hard times and jeopardizing Slovakia’s credibility,” the minister told reporters on Tuesday.
The health care budget was also the stumbling block at Parliamentary Finance Committee session dedicated to the next year’s state budget last week. KDH MP Anton Marcincin criticized that the health care sector was underfinanced and he did not recommend the plenum to pass the draft budget bill. Neither Marcincin nor his party colleague Alojz Pridal, who was supposed to table the proposal as part of the draft revision while it was discussed in committees, did not support the proposal in the end.
SITA