The President of the Association of Resident Doctors, Dr. Aleksandra Georgieva, revealed on Wednesday that following a meeting at the Ministry of Health, assurances were given regarding the adjustment of resident doctors’ salaries in line with agreements made previously. While the Minister was engaged in a meeting with the World Health Organization, his advisors welcomed the attendees. A key agreement discussed was based on the payment structure for private practice since 2018. Georgieva emphasized that as per a Government decision, resident doctors’ salaries should match those of general practitioners annually. The Ministry assured that it would inform the Government and the Health Insurance Fund (HIF) to implement these adjustments from the upcoming month, aligning them with the average salaries of general practitioners, currently at approximately Mden 44,000 (EUR 774).

Additionally, assurances were provided regarding health insurance coverage for all resident doctors, with a commitment to inform all public health institutions of this decision. Addressing concerns about transitioning from temporary to full-time contracts, Georgieva mentioned that despite the Government sending 1,117 agreements in February, they were not realized due to the electoral moratorium. However, promises were made to initiate extensive job advertisements in public health institutions post-elections. Georgieva stressed the need for amendments to recruitment criteria, advocating for preference to be given to medical specialists. Currently, such criteria do not exist, leading to the accumulation of all active doctors before considering general practitioners and other colleagues.