In an effort to alleviate the Polish judicial system, an amendment to the bill on patients’ rights allows for medical malpractice cases to be dealt with outside the courtroom.

The amendment, which was voted upon in the Sejm lower parliamentary house today, envisages a maximum compensation payment of 1.2 million zloty (305,000 euro).

The amendment has caused controversy with members of the opposition Law and Justice, however. The party points to a what it thinks is an ambiguous clause which allows for compensation “within a twelve month insurance period.”

Apart from other criticism relating to the professional descriptions of doctors and dentists, which were also voted on, Law and Justice believes that the bill is “bad, damaging and should be thrown in the bin.”

The leftist SLD has also slammed the bill.

Meanwhile, the Senate has passed a bill on medication refunds, which sets the price of pharmaceuticals as well as their profit margins. The bill also rules out the possibility to sell medication ‘on special offer’ in chemists. (jb)

Source: IAR