The Association for the Development of Bulgarian Healthcare (ADBH) announced on Friday that it will submit a formal complaint on Monday. The complaint is directed at the Bulgarian Medical Association and the National Health Insurance Fund concerning their refusal to incorporate financing for biomarker diagnostics into the National Framework Contract. The organization emphasized that biomarker testing is critical because it determines a patient’s specific sensitivity to various medications for cancers or metastases.
Without this testing, patients are limited to older therapies that are often poorly tolerated and less effective. Currently, Bulgaria is the only country in the European Union where individuals must pay for such diagnostic testing privately, with costs reported to range between EUR 500 and EUR 2,500. In its submission to the Commission for Protection against Discrimination, the association seeks a ruling confirming discrimination against cancer patients and demands that state authorities take measures to rectify the situation.
Furthermore, the ADBH is appealing to individuals who have incurred out-of-pocket expenses for biomarker testing to contact the association. This will allow the group to consolidate cases for future actions aimed at protecting patient rights, including pursuing claims for damages. The controversy stems from the funding mechanism for these diagnostics.
Although funds for biomarker diagnostics were allocated in the National Health Insurance Fund’s 2026 budget, an amendment adopted during the second reading relocated these funds from the medical services budget line to the medical devices budget line.
Topics: #association #discrimination #biomarker
