With the launch of the program free afternoon surgeries the government representative began, Pavlos Marinakisinforming the political editors.

“The program of free afternoon surgeries starts on Thursday 28 November and with resources of 54 million. euros from the Recovery and Resilience Fund, 37,000 afternoon surgeries will be performed for patients who are, according to the unified list of surgeries, waiting for more than four months. Patients who have been waiting for more than a year have already been notified and are in the process of pre-operative control. The number of scheduled appointments is expected to increase in the coming days as even more hospitals will participate in the program”, emphasized Mr. Marinakis.

He added that “free afternoon surgeries demonstrate in practice what real social policy means. Improving the lives of citizens is our first concern and that is why we continue the effort by supporting the NHS by making it easier for patients and speeding up the procedures using every available means, such as the resources from the Recovery Fund in such a way as to achieve this goal” .

Mr. Marinakis then noted that “with additional positive regulations, the tax bill titled “Measures to boost income – Tax incentives for innovation and business transformations and other provisions” was submitted to the Parliament yesterday”. And he referred to the main new provisions and what they concern.

He pointed out that in addition to these, the tax bill “includes 12 tax reductions and 12 measures to boost citizens’ income as well as provisions for the modernization of tax legislation and the administrative model that governs the AADE with the aim of making it even more effective”. “We continue steadfastly with the plan to improve the economy, in such a way that it is essentially reflected in the income of the citizens, either through direct increases, or indirectly through tax reductions,” he emphasized.

It then passed the draft law of the Ministry of Digital Governance for the Integration of Directive 2022/2555 of the European Parliament and of the Council, regarding measures for a high common level of cyber security throughout the Union.

“The aim of the draft law and the Directive is to strengthen the framework in our country, by establishing stricter requirements and to increase the exchange of information, communication and cooperation between the states of the Union. In this direction, it provides for strengthening the security of networks and systems of critical importance for the protection of citizens and businesses from cyber attacks. In particular, organizations that provide critical services, such as energy, transportation, health, should implement strict security measures and be able to effectively manage cyber threats. In addition, mechanisms for early reporting of cyber-attack incidents and control mechanisms are established to ensure that organizations comply with security standards,” it said.

And he added that “the competent control and supervision authority is the National Cybersecurity Authority. With the passage of the new law, demand for cybersecurity services, products and experts is expected to increase. For this purpose, it is foreseen that the National Authority will prepare relevant training programs, providing the possibility of certification, in cooperation with co-competent bodies”.

Mr. Marinakis also referred to another bill that will be introduced on Thursday for discussion. In particular, it is about the Ministry of Health’s decree entitled “Arrangements for the strengthening of the National Health System and the monitoring and evaluation of pharmaceutical expenditure”.

He underlined what the main provisions of the bill, which are brief, concern: the strengthening of the NHS and Healthcare Structures, Pharmaceutical Expenditure, Health Structure reforms, incentives in problem areas, Mental Health, the exploitation of saved resources and the use of additional financial tools and adjustments to contract, personnel management and funding procedures to enhance transparency.

Then Mr. Marinakis said that the Prime Minister is leaving for Nicosia, where the second Greece-Cyprus Intergovernmental Conference will take place. “It is recalled that the first took place last November in Athens, after the decision of the Prime Minister and the President of the Republic of Cyprus in July 2023 to institutionalize in this way the enrichment and deepening of cooperation between Athens and Nicosia in a number of fields”, noted.