Alberto Fernández stopped a 3.5% increase in fees from April

It seems a “classic” at the end of the month. President Alberto Fernández ended a resolution promoting the superintendence of health services that allowed another 3.5% increase from April 1 prepaid drug costs. “Now is not the time,” they are said to have said to Casa Rosada.

For this increase to take effect, the resolution must be published in the Official Journal at Monday at the latest so that prepaid drug companies can inform their affiliates about the increased fees 30 days in advance, as defined by the rules. But The chief of staff did not have it published, according to industry sources.

The previous increase, also 3.5%, was published on Saturday January 30 in the Official Journal – Resolution No. 531/21 – and affiliates notified 30 days in advance, it will govern the March quotas. At the same time, prepaid people must also increase by 3.5% the amounts they pay to doctors, professionals and clinics for the medical assistance benefits they provide to their members and families.

In December there was a 10% increase and that’s where the back and forth started. Initially by resolution of the Ministry of Health, this increase should have been 15% and 10% from February. But then the president ordered that resolution be rescinded and only 10% has been allowed since December.

This short circuit was repeated the following month because Health re-authorized from February a cumulative increase from 7% to 10% from December and again by presidential decision, it was canceled by the impact of quota increases on affiliates and their impact on the index inflation.

Now, for the third time, an increase promoted by Health has ended up being stopped in the presidential office.

Prepaid are this trill because they argue that medical costs have risen even more than average inflation. And in addition, they assure that it had been agreed with the government that they would authorize successive increases in quotas at the same rate as the labor income agreed in parities in line with the inflation forecast by the government, without recovering – they say – the delays of 2020.

In addition, the equal pay for clinics, sanatoriums, nursing homes and emergencies is expected to start this week to review last year’s differences (between 14 and 16 points) and to start agreeing on salary increases for the next 12 months, from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022.

In the meantime, the government argues that in addition to the 3.5% increase in quotas that has been in effect since March 1, In February, the amount paid by the state per worker under the Repro II program increased from $ 9,000 to $ 18,000 per month. to health providers such as clinics, sanatoriums, laboratories and diagnostic centers, due to the payment of wages by employers.

This strengthening of Repro II was supplemented by the exemption granted to the health sector until March 31 from the payment of employer contributions to Social Security. This payment exemption is more complete because it includes clinics and sanatoriums as well as social and prepaid work, as well as the extension, also for 90 days, of the reduction in tax rates on bank credits and debits.

They also argue the tax cost to the state due to the possibility that subsidiaries of prepaid companies have to deduct income tax up to 5% of net income each year.