The Association for the Development of Bulgarian Healthcare (ADBH) announced on Friday that it plans to file a complaint with the Commission for Protection against Discrimination. The complaint targets the Bulgarian Medical Association and the National Health Insurance Fund regarding their refusal to incorporate funding for biomarker diagnostics into the National Framework Contract. The ADBH stated that these tests are critical for determining the sensitivity of specific cancers or metastases to particular medications.
Without such diagnostic testing, patients are limited to receiving older, basic therapies, which the association noted can be poorly tolerated and lack efficacy. Currently, Bulgaria is the sole European Union country where patients must finance these vital biomarker tests out-of-pocket, with costs reported to range between EUR 500 and EUR 2,500. In its formal complaint to the Commission, the association seeks a determination of discrimination against cancer patients and requests that state authorities be mandated to cease this practice.
The patient organization has urged individuals who have personally covered the costs of biomarker testing to contact the ADBH so their cases can be incorporated into future legal actions aimed at protecting their rights, including seeking compensation for damages. The issue stems from a procedural change concerning funding. 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
