Business 12 June 2020, 1:57pm

Hungary’s healthcare system to reopen from Monday

Portfolio

All healthcare procedures may be carried out without limitations as of 15 June, while maintaining virus defence readiness, Minister for Human Capacities Miklós Kásler announced at a press conference in Budapest on Friday. In hospitals, this means that 80% of the beds previously set aside for coronavirus patients may now be re-allocated to general patient care, while 20% will be reserved for COVID-19 patients.

There will be no time limits in ambulant or general patient care from Monday as the decree limiting care to four patients an hour will be withdrawn, the minister said.

For special care, appointments must still be made by phone, and healthcare institutions will still have to do pre-triage and control suspicious cases using PCR tests, Kásler added.

As soon as Parliament decides to lift the emergency lockdown, healthcare workers will be allowed to travel abroad just any other Hungarian citizen, Kásler said.

Answering a question, the minister said Hungary’s healthcare system will be able to catch up in about two months regarding postponed treatments.

Cover photo: Mark H Milstein/Bloomberg via Getty Images