Hospital closures in Hungary? The ministry denies
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The government will “not close any hospitals”, the human resources ministry said on Saturday in the wake of opposition allegations.
The ministry referred to analyst Zsombor Kunetz, who had suggested that hospitals and outpatient clinics could be closed down under a recent circular by the ministry.
In its annual circular, the ministry “always asks health leaders what changes are needed in health services with a view to the actual situation,” the ministry said in its statement, adding that
“this has never resulted in hospital closures nor will it this time”.
As we reported before, in April, opposition Democratic Coalition filed a request for public data with Hungary’s national health insurance fund NEAK on the number of elderly Covid-19 hospital patients who have died due to a shortage of ventilators. In an online press conference, DK’s parliamentary spokesman Zoltán Varga cited the deputy head of the Trade Union of Hungarian Medical Doctors as telling commercial news channel ATV that certain hospitals could not place their 65-70-year-old patients on ventilators because of all the young patients requiring respiratory assistance.
They probably want to close them and build Football stadiums instead. I assume they will be built by the government “friends” and will cost twice than the market price.