The Ministry of Health, together with the NHSU and international advisers from the WHO, has embarked on work to create a Medical Guarantee Program for the next year.

According to First Deputy Minister of Health Oleksandr Komarida, during the war, when the main state budget expenditures are focused on defense, each hospital must now plan its budget more efficiently. In particular, revenues from the Medical Guarantee Program should continue to cover the payroll, medicines, and food. In addition, the hospital should leave funds for its development.

"Since the beginning of the full-scale war, strengthening the financial sustainability of each medical institution has been one of the main priorities of our work together with the NHSU and international partners. Therefore, we are now actively working to create a Medical Guarantee Program for 2024, which will allow each medical institution to remain financially viable even if funding is reduced, and patients to continue receiving quality and free medical services," said Oleksandr Komarida.

In particular, in the coming year, the Ministry of Health and its partners plan to introduce comprehensive monitoring of services provided to patients under the Medical Guarantee Program. A number of training programs will also be held for heads of medical institutions to improve financial management in the healthcare system.

"The goal of changes in the healthcare system is to create a single patient-friendly medical space. In 2023, the National Cancer Institute signed an agreement with the NHSU. It becomes part of this single space. And the process will continue. It is in this perspective that we started working on the program of medical guarantees for 2024. The year that should be the year of restoration of the country and its human potential. And the program of medical guarantees will work for this," said Natalia Husak, Head of the National Health Service of Ukraine.

The Program of Medical Guarantees for 2024 will be developed taking into account the challenges posed by the war and will take into account the changes that will be introduced as part of the next (infrastructure) stage of medical reform.