Minister of Health Bans Semi-Private Services During Official Working Hours
Aran Organization’s Team with Minister of Health – Erbil, Sep 1, 2024
Erbil, Kurdistan Region – The Minister of Health, Dr. Saman Barznjy, has officially prohibited the provision of semi-private services in all government hospitals across the Kurdistan Region during official working hours. The decision was made following a meeting with representatives from the Aran Organization.
The Aran Organization had advocated for this measure, highlighting the widespread violations of the existing regulations, which stipulate that semi-private services must only be provided after 1:00 PM, once official working hours have concluded. Many government hospitals were found to be disregarding these rules.
In response, the Minister of Health issued the following directives:
- A general warning will be disseminated to all health directorates across the Kurdistan Region.
- Semi-private services are strictly prohibited during official working hours.
- All semi-private services must be provided after 1:00 PM.
- Any hospital found violating this directive will have its director referred for investigation.
- Hospitals are required to refund fees to individuals who paid for semi-private services provided during official working hours.
The Aran Organization, with support from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), continues to monitor the health sector in the Kurdistan Region to ensure compliance with this directive and to advocate for better healthcare standards.
