About a week after the publication in "Israel Hayom" about the decision of the Maccabi HMO to prevent its insureds in the central area from being treated at Sheba Hospital, the heads of local authorities in the area are protesting the move.
In a letter sent today (Sunday) to Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz, they called on him to intervene in the issue and cancel the fund's decision.
"Maccabi's decision prevents our residents from receiving treatment at Sheba, a step that harms them as insured and violates the principle of equality for them and for all the insured in the fund," the heads of the authorities wrote to Minister Horowitz.
"This is a decision that stems solely from economic motives, which puts before its eyes only the good of the fund and severely harms an entire sector of insured persons who are discriminated against."
Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz (archive), Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
The letter is signed by the heads of the authorities, Yossi Brodney from Givat Shmuel, Lizzie Delricha from Ganei Tikva, Moti Landau from Savyon, Liat Shochat from Or Yehuda, Yaela Maklis from Yehud-Monosson, Ran Konik from Givatayim and Israel Gal from Kiryat Ono.
The seven criticize Maccabi's move, which prevents insured persons in their area from receiving treatment, while insured persons in two other localities in the center continue to enjoy services in Sheba.
"If the Maccabi HMO's claim that they are forced to take this step as a result of your office's decision to cancel the agreements between the HMO and the government hospitals is correct, then your intervention is required immediately," the heads of the authorities added in their letter to Horowitz.
"In our opinion, as the Minister of Health of the State of Israel, you must take all possible steps in order to overturn this scandalous decision that harms and discriminates against and is tainted with irrelevant considerations."
As you may recall, last week it was reported in "Israel Today" that Maccabi decided to deny its insured services at Sheba Hospital against the background of a request submitted by the HMO for a discount of tens of millions in the insured's hospitalization agreement.
MK Idit Silman, Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Following the exposure, a discussion took place in the Knesset Health Committee, chaired by MK Idit Silman, on the settlement between the health funds and the hospitals. During the meeting, the hospital directors protested that
"People in the world laugh at us for getting into this situation."
Committee chairman Silman said at the same hearing that "the very fact that a new patient could not reach Sheba, something he could have done before - is an injury to the insured."
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