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Attention. Obstetric Expenses Cared by the Government in Armenia

For already five months a state program of delivery aid is conducted in Armenia, according to which each pregnant woman is given an identity card to enjoy any kind of medical services related to pregnancy and obstetric free of charge. But according to the complaints addressed to the special hot line of the Ministry of Healthcare illegal collection of money is still continued at maternity hospitals.

According to the Ministry in July of this year 60 people out of 140 applying to the hot line complained of the medical institutions’ work realizing obstetric.

Karine Saribekyan, head of Mother-Baby Healthcare Department of the Ministry of Healthcare says people have complained of both extortion and confusion caused at medical institutions, particularly in regard to free and paid services.

“The woman is offered a paid ward, telling as if the free ones are busy. Moreover sometimes it is offered also to share a paid ward with another patient. This is illegal and people should be aware of this. In this respect many complaints were especially received to the address of the medical center “Shengavit”,” says Karine Saribekyan.

For already five months a state program of delivery aid is conducted in Armenia, according to which each pregnant woman is given an identity card to enjoy any kind of medical services related to pregnancy and obstetric free of charge. But according to the complaints addressed to the special hot line of the Ministry of Healthcare illegal collection of money is still continued at maternity hospitals.

According to the Ministry in July of this year 60 people out of 140 applying to the hot line complained of the medical institutions’ work realizing obstetric.

Karine Saribekyan, head of Mother-Baby Healthcare Department of the Ministry of Healthcare says people have complained of both extortion and confusion caused at medical institutions, particularly in regard to free and paid services.

“The woman is offered a paid ward, telling as if the free ones are busy. Moreover sometimes it is offered also to share a paid ward with another patient. This is illegal and people should be aware of this. In this respect many complaints were especially received to the address of the medical center “Shengavit”,” says Karine Saribekyan.

In accordance with the government special decision an “Obstetrical-Gynecological Hospital Aid” program has been invested since July of this year, and in this respect 1 billion drams has been added to 2, 9 billion drams already allocated out of the 2008 budget for obstetrics.

According to Vahan Poghosyan, head of the Department on Organizing Medical Aid of the Ministry of Healthcare, due to this program selection of both the maternity and antenatal clinics all over the republic doesn’t induce liabilities. “Control and delivery of the pregnant women are free independent of the clinic preferred by them,” says Poghosyan.

48 000-124 000 drams is allocated out of the budget per delivery. And in the case of caesarean section the state pays up to 215 000 drams.

The Ministry of Healthcare reports that 11 529 children were born from July to September of this year.

“The problem is that the calls are anonymous, and if the extortion is comprehended as a judicial term, then firstly the evidence should be fixed. But it is impossible, as there hasn’t yet been received any written claim,” says Karine Saribekyan.

Anyhow she assures those calls not being neglected by the Ministry. For example “Shengavit” medical center has thrice been strictly reproved. Saribekyan notes also that the claims were significantly lessened in October making only 5% of the overall calls.

Alexander Urumyan, the executive director of “Shengavit” doesn’t accept the blame addressed to the center.

“Calls to the hot line may be the initiative of our rivals, who don’t like we are applied to by so many clients and we have been registering a great progress during recent years. The calls are anonymous, and until now we haven’t received any written claim,” he says.

“Shengavit” is a private clinic, and here the patient is offered also paid extra services – a deluxe ward and food provision. But Urumyan assures that the center is open for all the pregnant women eager to enjoy their free, usual wards.

“Today pregnant woman pays only for non-medical extra services,” says the executive director of the hospital. “And in the case the clinic is excluded from the state program, all the expenses will be paid by the pregnant. In this case the hospital will lose its expectant mothers, because today a few are ready to pay 300 000 drams for delivery,” says Urumyan.

Some of the pregnant women assure that in some medical institutions they are demanded money on various pretexts. In such cases Saribekyan advises to select another clinic.

“Today there is rivalry between all the maternity hospitals, and in the case you are displeased of anything in medical institution you visit, select another one, where irrespective of the services being paid or free, you’ll be treated well,” says Saribekyan.

And Vahan Poghosyan adds that the government allocates plenty of money for all the services.

“Next year this program will be realized more strictly,” says Poghosyan and explains that the clinics not appropriately serving their patients will be deprived of the government order.

5, 9 billion drams (more by 2 billion drams in comparison with last year) is intended to allocate out of the budget for this program in 2009. Thus next year 150 000 drams instead of 124 000 of this year will be allocated for each delivery, and for those by caesarean section – 261 000 drams in lieu of 215 000 drams of this year.

The article was prepared within the framework of the seminar “Raising the Role of the Media in Covering Justice and Law Enforcement System”, organized by “Journalists for the Future” NGO