On Thursday, the Polish Parliament passed the Act on the Medical Fund, which provides for the allocation of additional money for health protection, including for the prevention, detection and treatment of cancer and rare diseases.
President Andrzej Duda announced the establishment of the Medical Fund in March. At the end of June, he submitted a bill to the Polish Parliament. The purpose of the fund is to support activities aimed at improving the health and quality of life of Poles by providing appropriate infrastructure and prevention, early detection and diagnosis, and treatment of civilization diseases, including cancer and rare diseases.
440 MPs voted in favour, 12 were against, and 2 abstained.
The fund is to finance the reconstruction, modernization or retrofitting of strategic healthcare entities, hospitals, increasing the effectiveness of preventive programs and financing innovative drug therapies, as well as healthcare services provided to recipients outside the country.
As stated in the Act, the maximum limit of expenditure from the state budget for these tasks this year cannot be higher than PLN 2 billion, and in subsequent years (until 2029) – not higher than PLN 4 billion per year.