The deficit in this year’s National Health Fund (NFZ) budget will amount to 14 billion PLN. The outlook for next year is no better. Finance Minister Andrzej Domański has found a way to increase the funds that go directly toward patient treatment – the Ministry of Health has proposed reducing the salaries of healthcare workers.
“The key is to ensure that these funds go to patients and medical services, and that they help shorten waiting times. However, due to the law adopted under the PiS government, a significant portion of these funds now goes toward wage increases in the healthcare sector,” said Domański on TVN24.
When asked about the wages of clinic and hospital staff, the finance minister stated that the indexation of their salaries ‘went too far.’
Doctors Warn of Consequences
The idea of introducing earnings caps for doctors originated with the Ministry of Health. Under the new proposal, within services financed by the NFZ, a limit of 240 PLN per hour of work for doctors would apply.
The medical community has responded sharply to this proposal. Members of the Supreme Medical Chamber (Naczelna Izba Lekarska) warn that such a cap could lead to staffing shortages during on-call shifts, where specialist coverage is required. Smaller healthcare centers would be particularly affected.
In practice, this means fewer doctors would be willing to work under NFZ contracts, and patients would increasingly have to seek specialist care privately.