The doctors resigned because the cabinet of Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smér) implemented cuts in the planned increase in the salaries of health workers as part of consolidation measures without the consent of the trade unions.
The law, which is supposed to force doctors to work, was supported by members of the government coalition for the parties Smér, Hlas and the Slovak National Party. The opposition was against it and pointed out that patients would lose out in the dispute. The medical trade union has already warned in advance that this law will not work in practice.
The approved law provides for the possibility of declaring an emergency situation due to the critical unavailability of institutional health care. This could be announced for a maximum of 60 days with the possibility of extension for the same period. The notice period would only expire on the day the extraordinary situation is lifted.
Slovak doctors began to resign en masse
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According to the TASR agency, an emergency situation is defined in the law as “disruption of the provision of health care when institutional health care providers cannot provide health care in the scope, quality and time necessary to protect life and health or prevent serious damage to health.” If such a situation were to arise, the doctors’ resignations would not take effect. In this way, the state wants to ensure a sufficient number of doctors in hospitals.
Minister of Health Kamil Šaško (Hlas) justified the presentation of the law with the threat of hospital collapse at the beginning of 2025, because the notice period for doctors expires at the end of 2024. “No one wants to lock anyone up. Of course, two are needed for an agreement,” the minister told the medical unions.
It is also expected to introduce new criminal offenses affecting the avoidance and denial of medical care in emergency situations. At the same time, in Slovakia, integrity is a condition for issuing a license to practice the medical profession.
Slovak doctors also filed mass resignations in 2011 during the government of Prime Minister Iveta Radičová, which led to the declaration of a state of emergency. At that time, thirty Czech military doctors helped in Slovak hospitals. The year before last, the doctors also demanded an increase in salaries and promises of other measures in the health care sector from the then government.
The parliament partially gave way to the Slovak health workers, they have not withdrawn their resignations yet
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