Medical and social examinations will be conducted in cluster and super-cluster hospitals - Liashko
Medical and social expertise should be conducted in a transparent and fair manner and be person-centered. There should be no room for corruption and abuse.
This was reported by the Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko on Facebook, Censor.NET reports.
"I absolutely support the decision of the National Security and Defence Council, which provides for the elimination of medical and social expert commissions from 31 December 2024 and the complete digitalization of all stages.
Aware of the current problems, last year the Ministry of Healthcare launched a review of the validity of the decisions of the MSEC to establish disability for men aged 18 to 60, which were made during the period of martial law. In total, three rounds of cross-checks were conducted, during which more than 90,000 cases were reviewed. We also intensified our cooperation with law enforcement agencies. Almost 19,000 medical expert cases have been processed. We have all seen the results of this cooperation recently in the media in the form of reports of detentions and notices of suspicion. However, these results are not sufficient. They do not suit me or the society. The law clearly regulates which institutions should regularly check the validity of decisions made by commissions at all levels and, if necessary, cancel them, analyze cases of unjustified decisions, consider appeals, and work to improve the process," Liashko said.
According to him, it is obvious that these functions were not performed properly.
"Therefore, appropriate personnel decisions have been made - the heads of the Central Medical and Social Expert Commission of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, the Ukrainian State Research Institute for Medical and Social Problems of Disability of the Ministry of Health, the Research Institute for Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities of Vinnytsia National Medical University named after M.I. Pirogov and employees of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine who were responsible for this area have been dismissed.
My position is clear and unequivocal: everyone who helps to illegally obtain certificates or obstructs those who really need them must be held accountable," Lyashko added.
At the same time, the Ministry of Health will intensify its work in all areas specified in the NSDC decision together with all bodies involved in the process of reforming the MSEC.
"The public discussion of the draft law we presented a few weeks ago, which provides that medical and social expertise will be carried out in cluster and supercluster hospitals, is underway, which, together with other proposed solutions, will help to resolve the issue of sufficient staff, introduce digital solutions, change the funding procedure and ensure the necessary barrier-free access. I will report in detail on each stage and its results," the Health Minister summarises.
After the NSDC meeting on the situation with the MEC, the leadership of the Central Medical and Social Expert Commission was dismissed and the heads of the relevant department of the Ministry of Health responsible for coordinating the MEC's activities were dismissed.
This was announced by the head of the Cabinet of Ministers Denys Shmyhal on Telegram, Censor.NET reports.
Shmyhal reminded that on Tuesday, 22 October, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy convened a meeting of the National Security and Defence Council, which adopted several radical and at the same time very systemic decisions.
In particular, Shmyhal said that by the end of this year, the MSECs will be liquidated. Instead, a digital, transparent, European model will be introduced.
"I have instructed the Minister of Health to submit all the necessary regulatory documents and draft laws to the Cabinet of Ministers no later than 1 November to complete the reform of the MSEC and introduce a new European model," the Prime Minister said.
The second decision made during the NSDC and already implemented by the Minister of Health is a series of dismissal orders.
"In particular, the leadership of the Central Medical and Social Expert Commission was dismissed, and the heads of the relevant department of the Ministry of Health responsible for coordinating the activities of the MSEC were dismissed," Shmyhal said.
And the third decision relates to the fact that unreasonable disability decisions issued by the MSEC will be checked and reviewed, especially in relation to officials.
According to the Prime Minister, all inspections will be carried out within three months.
Corruption in the MSEC
On 5 October, the State Bureau of Investigation reported that the head of the State Medical Expertise Commission in the Khmelnytskyi region, Krupa, was found to have $6 million in cash during searches. Suspilne noted that it was Tatiana Krupa, who is a member of the Servant of the People party in the Khmelnytsky Regional Council. Tetiana Krupa has been working as the chief doctor of the Regional Forensic Medical Examination Commission since 2008.
It was also reported that the head of the Khmelnytskyi regional center of the MSEC was detained and notified of suspicion of illegal enrichment.
Currently, the SBI is studying the lists found in the office of the head of the Khmelnytsky MSEC Krupa. They contain names and fictitious diagnoses.
On Monday, 7 October, the Pechersk District Court imposed a pre-trial restraint in the form of detention on the head of the Khmelnytsky Regional Medical Examiner's Office, Tetiana Krupa.
On 10 October, Oleksandr Krupa, the son of Tetiana Krupa, resigned at his own request from the post of head of the Pension Fund in Khmelnytskyi Oblast.
The National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption has announced that it will conduct a second full check of the declaration of Tetiana Krupa, head of the Khmelnytsky Regional Centre for Medical and Social Expertise.
On 16 October, the editor-in-chief of Censor.NET, Yurii Butusov, published information that 49 prosecutors of the Khmelnytsky region, headed by the regional prosecutor Oleinik, had received disability by "covering up"the corruption scheme of the servant of the people Krupa in the MSEC and the Pension Fund. In particular, the journalist provided a list of the names of all prosecutors and described the criminal scheme used.
Censor.NET featured a story about the head of the Cherkasy Regional Prosecutor's Office, Shevtsova, who, at the age of 42, receives a pension of 785,000.
A list of 30 heads of regional prosecutor's offices who receive the highest pensions has also been published.
On 22 October, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy enacted the NSDC's decision to prepare draft laws on the liquidation of the MSEC.
For more information
It is worth noting that cluster hospitals are multidisciplinary hospitals that will meet the needs of the population in the treatment of the most common diseases.
A supercluster hospital is a hospital that provides any care that can be obtained in the region.
