Ambulance on a Prague street
As reported by the portal Vinegret.cz citing Czech Television, the corresponding verdict was issued on May 24 in the framework of considering proposals to repeal two paragraphs of the law, submitted by the Prague City Court and the Prague 6 District Court. They stood up for two Ukrainian women who found themselves in a difficult situation during pregnancy and after childbirth.
One of the foreign women had lived and worked in the Czech Republic since 2008. In 2012, due to a severe pregnancy, she was forced to take a long sick leave. The Ukrainian's employment contract expired on January 31, 2013, and since she did not have permanent residence status, she also lost her state health insurance from VZP.
The foreign woman gave birth in March of the same year, and received a permanent residence permit only in June. As a result, the hospital began to demand payment for medical care not from the insurance company, but directly from the new mother. The woman refused to pay, so the medical facility filed a lawsuit.
A second Ukrainian citizen found herself in a similar situation. The Prague Institute for the Care of Mother and Child is demanding 700,000 crowns from her for medical care provided to her newborn son. The foreign woman herself was insured, but her baby was not. The woman signed a contract to pay for medical services out of her own pocket when the child was in danger of death and required urgent hospitalization.
The Prague City Court and the Prague 6 District Court sided with the Ukrainian women, sending a request to amend two paragraphs of the existing law, which, in their opinion, could be discriminatory in some cases. However, the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic decided otherwise.
"The right to health protection is indeed given to everyone, both citizens and foreigners who live on our territory. However, it should not be confused with the right to free healthcare. It is only available to participants in the compulsory health insurance system - citizens of the Czech Republic, foreigners with permanent residence, and officially employed foreigners. There are no grounds to change the current rules. Those who for some reason are not participants in compulsory health insurance can buy commercial insurance or pay for hospital services themselves," the court's verdict states.