The Minister for Health summarised the government programme again at the meeting.
Schneider acknowledged that the programme, praised by the coalition partners DP and the Greens, is ambitious. However, for CSV MP Jean-Marie Halsdorf, that ambition is not necessarily positive. Halsdorf believes that the government will attempt to do too much. He described the programme as not clearly structured and incoherent.
Opinion certainly split concerning one point of the programme - the legalisation of recreational cannabis. The Pirate Party claimed that the legalisation process is too slow. According to MP Sven Clement, the government must hit the iron while it's still hot.
However, despite this support from some MPs, the Luxembourgish government has received criticism from abroad. The German CDU is concerned about the risk of drug tourism in Saarland. Schneider explained that the government does need to take these concerns seriously and address them in turn. In that context, Schneider highlighted that colleagues in different ministries are also involved in that decision, especially the Ministries of Justice, Finance, and Agriculture.
Schneider highlighted that one of his priorities is to boost the attractiveness of becoming a doctor. Currently, many Luxembourgish students of medicine choose to remain abroad for their careers, which is leading to a doctor shortage in the Grand Duchy. One solution suggested by the state is to offer one-time allowances of €10,000 as a starting capital for shared practices.
The ministry will also reexamine the 1983 law on medical equipment. The law dictates which medical equipment can exclusively be used in hospitals. Schneider's agenda on Tuesday included a meeting with actors in the sector (doctor associations, hospital federations, etc) to discuss this issue. The question would be whether the ministry should authorise some equipment for local practices as well, which would alleviate the strain on hospitals. As such, patients would no longer have to trek to hospitals for certain check ups. Schneider cited the issue that the east of country lacks both a hospital and a 'maison medicale', which is an emergency doctor's practice.
Clement deplored that while the programme mentioned the digitisation of healthcare, the minister did not go into detail in the commission meeting. Only once questioned did Schneider elaborate that the government would introduce the electronic exchange of information between doctors and pharmacies this year. This means that you would no longer have to take your prescription to a pharmacy.
