Keepin touch

Whether you have a question, comment, suggestion or any problem in the purview of the government, send us your message and we will try to respond as soon as possible. If your problem is not in our purview, we will forward your message to the relevant institution.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Implementation of systemic laws and better position of health sector employees

Belgrade, 28 December 2005

Serbian Minister of Health Tomica Milosavljevic said today that 2006 will be the year devoted to implementation of systemic laws passed in 2005 in the health care sector, as well as improvement of financial position of the employees in this sector.

At a New Year cocktail party where the best hospitals and health centres in Serbia were awarded recognition for their work, Milosavljevic said that in line with the newly adopted laws, boards of health workers will be formed by mid-2006, and announced passing of several bylaws so as to elaborate the adopted legal solutions.

He pointed out that in the next year the salaries of doctors and nurses will be increased by 25-30 percent, highlighting that it will be the highest increase in salaries in public services in the country, which will create 1:2:4 ratios between salaries of employees with the lowest and the highest level of education in this sector.

According to Milosavljevic, a protocol on raise in salaries has already been accepted by the Union of Nurses and in the next two days the "Nezavisnost" Union, as well as the Union of Employees in the Health and Social Security Sector, should come up with their position.

The minister said that in the next year a revenue of 1 billion dinars is expected on the grounds of the decision to set aside one dinar from each pack of cigarettes sold for the purposes of the health sector in Serbia and added that those funds will be used for equipping hospitals, expendable supplies and creation of the national strategy for non-contagious mass diseases.

In the first six months of 2006, talks with the European Investment Bank on the loans for renovation of the Torlak Institute and clinical centres in Belgrade, Nis, Kragujevac and Novi Sad should also be concluded, said Milosavljevic.

As a special success of the ministry, Milosavljevic quoted the introduction of a stricter procedure for issuing medical prescriptions this year, which has reduced the consumption of sedatives by one third.

The minister recalled that as of January 1, 2006, the categories of citizens who according to the new law do not have right to free dental services must now pay for them.