News Digest 22.04.2024 — 24.04.2024
Regulators
The State Duma proposed giving those in difficult situations a social card to buy medicine
Deputies of the faction “A Just Russia – For Truth” proposed introducing a social card “Help” for citizens in difficult life situations. As planned, with such a card it will be possible to purchase essential goods, including groceries, medicines and medical products. If the bill is adopted, the list of goods, conditions and procedure for providing the card will be established by the Government of the Russian Federation.
The innovation is planned to be introduced into the Federal Law “On targeted assistance to citizens and families in difficult life situations.” A mandatory condition for obtaining a social card, according to the bill, is permanent residence in Russia.
It is planned to provide targeted assistance to a citizen living alone or to each family member. To obtain a card, you need to contact the social security authority at your place of residence (stay) or actual residence. The amount of payment will be set in accordance with the cost of living for the second quarter of the previous year of application. A citizen can apply monthly for a “Help” card.
Funds for the implementation of the project, as indicated in the explanatory note, will be allocated from the federal budget.
The list of difficult life situations includes loss of property and forced relocation due to SVO, disability, inability to self-care due to old age, illness. The list also includes orphanhood, neglect, poverty, unemployment, lack of a specific place of residence, conflicts and abuse in the family.
In September 2023, the All-Russian Patients' Union and the Center for Humanitarian Technologies and Research "Social Mechanics" studied the availability of therapy for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in Russia in 2023. It turned out that 35.8% of beneficiaries did not receive the prescribed medications; in 2022 the figure was 39%, and in 2019 – 19%.
In January 2024, Natalia Kosikhina, a member of the Federation Council Committee on Social Policy, proposed increasing the period during which disability status is maintained from one to two years to three to five years. She noted that many people with disabilities find it difficult to get to the place of medical and social examination.
Market news
Murashko: floods did not cause serious damage to medical equipment
The head of the Russian Ministry of Health, Mikhail Murashko, said that medical equipment did not suffer serious damage due to floods in some regions of Russia, since all necessary measures were taken in a timely manner. At the same time, the minister noted the need for repairs to some medical institutions.
Murashko said that the priority now is restoration of finishing and repairs. Currently, work is being carried out to assess the damage caused by the floods, but the full range of medical assistance continues to be provided, the minister noted.
A dam break on the Ural River occurred in Orsk on April 5, as a result of which the Orenburg, Kurgan and Tyumen regions were at risk of flooding. How the healthcare system responded to the flood situation in the regions in the first week is in the Vademecum review.
Source: https://ria.ru/20240423/oborudovanie-1941671202.html
The EU will investigate Chinese government purchases of medical equipment due to suspicions of protectionist policies
The inspection was initiated due to numerous complaints from European manufacturers about the discriminatory policies of the PRC during procurement activities. It is indicated that problems arise due to the slow process of certification of foreign medical products in China and the opacity of this mechanism, as well as the strict policy of strengthening the national economy in the eastern country. In addition, equipment manufacturers point out that Chinese government tenders have often begun to emphasize the need for domestically produced products.
For nine months, the EU commission will conduct an investigation that will include collecting information from companies and EU member states, and negotiations with Beijing on fair and open markets. If the prioritization of Chinese equipment is revealed and there are no changes in the policy of the Chinese side, the European Union threatens to introduce restrictions on China’s participation in its own tenders.
As Bloomberg points out, this investigation is the first case of application of the EU International Procurement Instrument, a 2022 law designed to promote mutual accessibility of economic participants to public procurement markets.
Source: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ%3AC_202402973
Other
In Moscow, a compulsory medical insurance tariff was introduced for the analysis of fluorography and radiography using AI
Autonomous artificial intelligence (AI) has been introduced in Moscow clinics to analyze X-ray studies without the participation of a doctor. A special compulsory medical insurance tariff has been established for such a service, said the mayor of the city, Sergei Sobyanin.
Patients will begin to receive conclusions from the neural network in the electronic medical record (EMR) after performing fluorography or chest radiography in May.
According to Sobyanin, an average of 2 million fluorographs and chest x-rays are performed annually in Moscow clinics, and most of them are performed for prevention. For example, in 99% of fluorographs no pathologies are detected, and doctors are engaged in describing the norm.
“Given the vast accumulated experience in this field, smart algorithms are able to accurately determine the absence of signs of disease. Therefore, we are ready to transfer the analysis and description of research to AI services configured for maximum sensitivity,” the mayor explained.
Until September, the results of the AI analysis will be cross-checked by the country's leading radiologists to ensure that the risks of diagnostic errors are reduced to zero. Specialists of the clinic named after. prof. Yu.N. Kasatkin Russian Medical Academy of Continuing Professional Education will conduct additional checks within 48 hours and form their own conclusions, which will also be stored in the EHR. That is, for the first time, two protocols will be available to patients - from the AI service and from a medical specialist.
Studies in which AI will identify pathologies will be sent to doctors at the capital’s radiology reference center for analysis and preparation of a conclusion. In this case, the patient will receive the result within 24 hours.
Based on the results of the experiment, a decision will be made to introduce automated interpretation of X-ray data using AI technologies on an ongoing basis without additional review by a doctor.
Sobyanin did not disclose the size of the compulsory medical insurance tariff for this service. Previously, MV learned the size of the tariff for the analysis of radiation studies using neural networks, which was introduced in Moscow on January 1, 2023. The Tariff Agreement for the payment of medical care provided under the Moscow Territorial Compulsory Health Insurance Program then included “Description and interpretation of mammography data using artificial intelligence.” The tariff was set at 239 rubles, the Moscow City Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund reported in response to a request from MV. At the same time, market participants stated that they did not know how it was formed.
News
