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Deputy prime minister calls for charging people for visiting outpatient clinics

Deputy Prime Minister Anatol Tozik suggested on Thursday that people should be charged 5,000 rubels ($0.6) for every visit to local outpatient clinics.

The vice premier voiced the proposal at a meeting of the health ministry's top officials in Minsk. He said that the measure would help reduce long lines and waiting times that visitors often face in outpatient clinics.

"We have 13 visits to outpatient clinics per capita every year, while in neighboring countries there are six to six and a half visits per capita," the government-controlled newspaper Zvyazda quoted Mr. Tozik as saying.

He suggested that the "token" charge would prompt many people to think whether they really need to see a doctor.

The proposal drew applause from the gathering, the paper said. //BelaPAN