Waiting lists, the Veneto Region to the Local Health Authorities: “Pay for visits outside the deadline and apply the law”

The program Fuori dal Coro a few weeks ago informed viewers of a law that was not even recent and which concerns healthcare waiting lists. In particular, Legislative Decree 124 of 1998. The latter regulates waiting lists and indicates that the Regions, together with local health authorities and hospitals, must establish the maximum times that elapse between the request for the service and its execution. Maximum times that must be communicated by the Cup operators to citizens so that they can request that the service be carried out intramoenia paying only the cost of the ticket. The news is that, if the deadlines set by the Cup are not respected, patients will be able to request reimbursement of the expenses incurred directly from the Local Health Authority.

In essence, citizens who will not be visited within the times established by the Cup will be able to request to be visited intramoenia, by a specialist, upon receipt of an appointment agreed with the Cup. If the citizen is not called within the times foreseen by the scheduled appointment, he or she may be visited as a freelancer entirely at the expense of the Ulss, unless a health copay is provided which, at that point, will be the only expense borne by the user. External private visits that the user has made of their own free will to bring forward the times of the Cup will not be reimbursed.

Ulss 7 has not yet officially communicated this important news, but many other Ulss in the Veneto have. The general manager Annicchiarico sent a circular that speaks clearly: “People who turn to public health must be informed of their right to receive the service within the times established by the prescription, also resorting to private intramoenia if the wait extends beyond the deadline set”

“The contents of DG Annicchiarico’s circular, which reminds the Local Health Authorities of the dictates of Legislative Decree 124 of 1998, should become the subject of a real information campaign by the Region, said Erika Baldin, group leader in the regional council of the 5 Star Movement and member of the Health commission, in a note.

“If the waiting lists are too long, you can obtain the service under the intramoenia freelance regime, paying only the ticket: the difference will then have to be reimbursed by the Ulss. The important thing is that the citizen explicitly requests authorization before completing the booking, attaching the request and the Cup reminder which shows that the appointment date exceeds the waiting times with the assigned priority – continues Baldin – . A procedure that is not very simple and, above all, unknown to most people: for this reason it is necessary to inform citizens, explaining how to obtain a refund. In February 2023 I presented a regional project to make the provisions of the ’98 state law operational, providing that the citizen is informed of this possibility starting from the medical prescription. We want the Cup itself, when it communicates to the citizen that there are no appointments available within the deadline, to direct him towards the intramoenia freelance profession, explaining the procedures for reimbursement. I therefore ask that my proposal be scheduled in the Health Commission as soon as possible, for rapid approval by the regional council. In the meantime, however, the Region could already disseminate the contents of Annichiarico’s circular”, concludes Erika Baldin.

by AltovicentinOnline Editorial Team

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