Parliament rejected at first reading on Wednesday the bill to amend the Medical Treatment Facilities Act submitted by Continue the Change. The amendments sought to guarantee adequate minimum levels of pay for medical staff in state and municipal hospitals, emergency medical centres, transfusion haematology centres, oncology and dialysis centres, psychiatric care facilities and departmental medical establishments. It was proposed that part of the remuneration be linked to continuing education and additional qualifications acquired. Effective sanctions were to be introduced for failure to comply with the statutory minimum pay thresholds, including the possibility of terminating contracts with the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) and imposing financial fines on the management of healthcare establishments.
The proposed amendments to the Medical Treatment Facilities Act were also rejected in the re-vote, with 60 votes in favour, 4 against and 116 abstentions. The re-vote was requested by Venko Sabrutev Continue the Change, who noted that only the governing parties were against decent pay for Bulgarian doctors, nurses and medical professionals on World Day for Decent Work – October 7.
Progressive Bulgaria MP Yulian Dimitrov noted that medical treatment facilities operate as commercial companies and public enterprises, and therefore their funding should be linked to a specific task and methodology. Minimum remuneration cannot be imposed by law and then healthcare establishments sanctioned for failing to meet it, he said. The bill envisages additional expenditure without guaranteed revenues, Dimitrov commented. According to him, if the bill is adopted without additional funding, it will lead to debt and bankruptcy.
Continue the Change Floor Leader Nikolay Denkov said that there are selective funds for financing medical treatment facilities. “What I am missing is your proposal for solving this problem,” he told the governing parties.
Later, in the corridors of Parliament, Continue the Change MP Velislav Velichkov said: “Today, young doctors were expecting this issue to finally be resolved at legislative level before the budget.” According to him, the Prime Minister had created this opportunity with his statement at the Council of Ministers, but his own group had effectively blocked him with its vote. On the World Day for Decent Work, the Government of Rumen Radev voted for indecent pay for Bulgarian doctors and other medical professionals, Velichkov added.
Democratic Bulgaria MP Alexander Simidchiev said that the “bleeding of specialists out of the system” threatens the entire system and therefore they would support the bill. He commented that if they adopted the amendments as they currently stand, they would put smaller healthcare establishments at risk, but could make the provisions effective between the first and second readings.
Vazrazhdane MP Georgi Georgiev asked whether Progressive Bulgaria would change the current model, “which leads to the draining of the NHIF and to inadequate pay for medical professionals.” According to him, if the governing parties say they cannot take measures because this would constitute unregulated financial assistance, this means that they support the same corrupt model of healthcare.
Yulian Dimitrov replied that Progressive Bulgaria does not support any corrupt models. “The fact that this unregulated activity was uncovered in Plovdiv shows that we are plugging the leaks,” he said.
GERB-UDF MP Luchezar Ivanov commented that, logically, since young doctors and medical trainees are being trained, their funding should come from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education and Science, rather than from Health Insurance Fund money. “The idea is to build on the system, rather than make amendments to amendments,” he added.
Progressive Bulgaria MP Georgi Petrov said that they would not support the bill, not because they did not want nurses to earn more. “There is a mechanism and soon they will feel a difference in their pay,” he added.
Velichkov responded that a mechanism had been proposed in the bill. “You say: ‘We have one’ – well, give it to us,” he urged the governing parties.
Parliament Rejects at First Reading Amendments to Medical Treatment Facilities Act on Minimum Wage for Medical Staff 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-07 11:36:30
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BULGARIA NEWS – NEWS AGENCY 2009–2026 2026-10-07 11:36:30
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