With over one year delay, Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis announced that the special category of oncology and hematology patients will be able to undergo blood tests as often as their treating physician deems necessary.
On a post on X, Georgiadis wrote:
“Based on an earlier and incorrect administrative directive, oncology and hematology patients were entitled to blood tests only every 20 days. As you can easily understand, this created enormous problems for patients who, according to their clinical picture, needed more frequent monitoring. The result was that they were financially burdened. Recognizing the injustice and hardship it caused to patients and their families, our government, through the Ministry of Health, proceeded to correct this directive.
Now, oncology and hematology patients have the opportunity to undergo blood tests as often as their treating physician deems necessary — even on a daily basis, if this is required by the course of the disease and their treatment regimen. With this regulation, we strengthen public health, stand by the people who need it most and ensure equal access to quality care services.”
It should be recalled that it was the same Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis who passed the time limitation on blood tests in December 2023 and went in effect on 01.01.2024.
The minister had initially claimed that oncology patients would be excluded from the barrier. But he did not put it in effect.
The decision passed despite objections by oncologists and hematologists.
The decision led many oncology and hematology patients to financial bloodletting and some of them were also forced to drop their necessary such blood tests because they could simple did not afford them.
I remember a friend of mine, a nurse in the outpatient oncology department of a big hospital in Athens, telling me that patients were crying because they could not pay the blood tests from their own pockets.
She was telling me that especially patients in chemotherapy needed to check the levels of their white cells and platelets occasionally every week depending on the type and the drugs of chemo.
Without prescription, as their doctor was not allowed to and would be kicked out of the automatic prescription system, they would have to pay €200 to €300 at least from their own pocket. Not to mention the high cost for a series of supplements etc they already pay extra, including to combat symptoms of chemotherapy side-effects.
And now, after almost one and a half year, this vulnerable group of patients were suffering, the Health Minister speaks of “injustice”? What a hypocrisy!
PS I cannot upload Georgiadis’ post here because he has me …blocked LOL 🙂
