natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
The activities of the health insurance companies managing the compulsory health insurance scheme are subject to the overall control of the State, exercised in particular through the regulatory authority — the HSA, which has a monitoring and supervisory role in the health system.
Djelatnosti društava za zdravstveno osiguranje koja upravljaju sustavom obveznog zdravstvenog osiguranja podliježu općem nadzoru države, koji se posebno provodi putem regulatornog tijela – HSA, koje ima ulogu praćenja i nadzora u zdravstvenom sustavu.
The HSA supervises whether health insurance companies and providers adhere to this legislative framework and intervenes when violations occur.
HSA nadzire poštuju li društva za zdravstveno osiguranje i pružatelji zdravstvenog osiguranja ovaj zakonodavni okvir i intervenira kada dođe do povreda.
DESCRIPTION OF THE CONTESTED MEASURES
OPIS OSPORAVANIH MJERA
The present decision examines the following six measures (collectively referred to as ‘the contested measures’) [25]:
Ova odluka ispituje sljedećih šest mjera (pod zajedničkim nazivom „osporavane mjere”) [25]:
THE 2006 CAPITAL INCREASE IN SZP
POVEĆANJE KAPITALA SZP-a U 2006.
By letter dated 2 April 2007, the privately-owned health insurance company Dôvera lodged a complaint with the Commission against a capital injection by the Slovak Republic into the State-owned company SZP in amount of SKK 450 million (approximately EUR 15 million) made in three tranches between 28 November 2005 and 18 January 2006.
Dopisom od 2. travnja 2007. privatno društvo za zdravstveno osiguranje Dôvera Komisiji je dostavilo pritužbu protiv injekcije kapitala Slovačke Republike u društvo SZP u državnom vlasništvu u iznosu od 450 milijuna SKK (približno 15 milijuna EUR) provedene u tri tranše između 28. studenoga 2005. i 18. siječnja 2006.
That capital increase was associated with the reform of the healthcare sector and the 2004-2005 reform of the health insurance sector in the Slovak Republic.
To povećanje kapitala povezano je s reformom zdravstvenog sektora i reformom sektora zdravstvenog osiguranja u Slovačkoj Republici u razdoblju 2004.–2005.
Those liabilities amounted to SKK 467,765 million (approximately EUR 15,5 million) on 31 December 2005.
Te obveze 31. prosinca 2005. iznosile su 467,765 milijuna SKK (približno 15,5 milijuna EUR).
THE DISCHARGE OF SZP'S DEBTS BY VERITEĽ
OTPLATA DUGOVA SZP-A OD STRANE VERITEĽA
Veriteľ was established as a new State agency for the consolidation of healthcare debts in 2003 [27] and was tasked by the Slovak Government with the implementation of a project to relieve healthcare facilities and health insurance companies of their debts prior to the reorganisation of all existing health insurance funds as joint stock companies by 30 September 2005.
Veriteľ je osnovan kao nova državna agencija za konsolidaciju dugova zdravstva u 2003. [27], a slovačka Vlada dala mu je zadatak provesti projekt otpisa dugova zdravstvenim ustanovama i društvima za zdravstveno osiguranje prije reorganizacije postojećih fondova zdravstvenog osiguranja kao dioničkih društava do 30. rujna 2005.
The debt relief process was carried out pursuant to Slovak Government resolutions.
Proces otpisa dugova proveden je u skladu s odlukama slovačke Vlade.
In the period 2003 to 2005, Veriteľ settled debt in the health sector exceeding EUR 1100 million in accounting value at the cost of EUR 644 million in cash.
Veriteľ je u razdoblju od 2003. do 2005. podmirio dug u zdravstvenom sektoru koji je prelazio 1100 milijuna EUR u računovodstvenoj vrijednosti po cijeni od 644 milijuna EUR u gotovini.
Since the Ministry of Health announced that this was the last bail-out of the healthcare system, the agency Veriteľ was abolished in 2006 [28].
S obzirom na to da je Ministarstvo zdravstva najavilo da je to bila posljednja sanacija zdravstvenog sustava, agencija Veriteľ ukinuta je 2006. [28].
The complainant claims that the discharge by Veriteľ of EUR 52,7 million of SZP's debt, being higher than what the complainant itself had received [29], suggests unjustified discriminatory treatment in the debt-discharging process.
Podnositelj pritužbe tvrdi da otplata 52,7 milijuna EUR SZP-ova duga od strane Veriteľa, više od onoga što je podnositelj pritužbe sam primio [29], ukazuje na neopravdano diskriminatorno postupanje u procesu otplate duga.
However, the complainant's main concern is that, additionally, on 30 November 2005 (therefore after the transformation), Veriteľ further discharged approximately EUR 28 million of further debt that SZP had to the special premium redistribution account.
Međutim, glavna briga podnositelja pritužbe jest to što je, osim toga, 30. studenoga 2005. (dakle, nakon pretvorbe), Veriteľ dodatno otplatio približno 28 milijuna EUR dodatnog duga koji je SZP imao prema posebnom računu za preraspodjelu premije.
This was done through the assignment by SZP to Veritel' of premium claims and interest.
To je učinjeno putem prijenosa potraživanja premija i kamata sa SZP-a na Veritel.
SZP assigned to Veritel' approximately SKK 929 million in claims of premium and interests (of this about SKK 343 million in interest).
SZP je Veritelu prenio oko 929 milijuna SKK u potraživanjima premije i kamata (od toga oko 343 milijuna SKK u kamatama).
In return, Veritel' provided consideration of SKK 840 million (approximately EUR 28 million) to SZP by setting off its debt to the special premium redistribution account [30].
Veritel je SZP-u za uzvrat osigurao naknadu od 840 milijuna SKK (približno 28 milijuna EUR) kompenzacijom njegova duga na poseban račun za preraspodjelu premije [30].
THE 2006 SUBSIDY TO SZP
SUBVENCIJA SZP-u 2006.
The complainant alleges that this subsidy was provided to settle SZP's liabilities with healthcare providers dating from before 2005, although it was not clear whether those debts continued to exist at the time of the grant.
Podnositelj pritužbe navodi da je ova subvencija osigurana za namiru obveza SZP-a prema pružateljima zdravstvene skrbi koje datiraju prije 2005., premda nije jasno jesu li ti dugovi i dalje postojali u vrijeme odobrenja.
However, according to the Slovak authorities, the financial resources from the liquidation balance of Veriteľ were not provided to SZP but to medical facilities, which at the time were owned by the State, for payment of their liabilities (i.e. health insurance contributions for their employees) to SZP.
Međutim, prema slovačkim tijelima, financijska sredstva iz salda likvidacije Veriteľa nisu dodijeljena SZP-u već medicinskim ustanovama, koje su u to vrijeme bile u vlasništvu države, za plaćanje njihovih obveza (odnosno doprinosa za zdravstveno osiguranje za njihove zaposlenike) SZP-u.
Consequently, according to the Slovak authorities, no subsidy was involved, but rather a normal payment of existing undisputed liabilities by the State — unpaid premiums for health insurance.
Posljedično, prema slovačkim tijelima, nije se radilo o subvenciji, već o uobičajenom plaćanju postojećih neosporavanih obveza države – neplaćenim premijama za zdravstveno osiguranje.
THE 2010 CAPITAL INCREASE IN VZP
POVEĆANJE KAPITALA VZP-a 2010.
The Slovak Republic, through the Ministry of Health Services, increased its registered share capital in VZP on 1 January 2010.
Slovačka Republika je putem Ministarstva zdravstvenih usluga povećala svoj upisani temeljni kapital u VZP-u 1. siječnja 2010.
The increase in share capital amounted to approximately EUR 65,1 million.
Povećanje temeljnog kapitala iznosilo je približno 65,1 milijun EUR.
According to the complainant, given that VZP was close to insolvency, it appears that the State acted in this way to bridge VZP's revenue deficit.
Prema podnositelju pritužbe, s obzirom na to da je VZP-u prijetila nesolventnost, država je djelovala na ovaj način kako bi premostila VZP-ov manjak prihoda.
The complainant also claims the State had absolutely no hope of receiving a return on its investment within a reasonable time-frame, particularly given that Slovakia had just introduced a law preventing health insurance companies from distributing their profits.
Podnositelj pritužbe također tvrdi da se država nije apsolutno nikako mogla nadati da će primiti povrat na svoje ulaganje unutar razumnog vremenskog okvira, posebno s obzirom na to da je Slovačka upravo uvela zakon kojim se društvima za zdravstveno osiguranje zabranjuje raspodjela dobiti.
According to the Slovak authorities, this 2010 capital increase in VZP was made to eliminate the impacts of the financial crisis and to support VZP in withstanding the pressure to increase the level of indebtedness with growing demand for healthcare.
Prema slovačkim tijelima ovo povećanje kapitala VZP-a 2010. provedeno je radi uklanjanja utjecaja financijske krize i podrške VZP-u u podnošenju pritiska za povećanje razine zaduženosti s rastućom potražnjom za zdravstvenom skrbi.
THE RISK EQUALISATION SCHEME (RES)
PROGRAM ZA IZJEDNAČAVANJE RIZIKA (RES)
During its preliminary assessment, the Commission also discovered that the funding of health insurance companies in the Slovak Republic includes a pooling and risk adjustment mechanism — a Risk Equalisation Scheme (RES).
Komisija je tijekom prethodne procjene također otkrila da financiranje društava za zdravstveno osiguranje u Slovačkoj Republici uključuje zajednički mehanizam i mehanizam prilagodbe rizicima – Program za izjednačavanje rizika (RES).
The RES [31] applies fully to all health insurance companies providing compulsory health insurance in the Slovak Republic.
RES [31] se u potpunosti primjenjuje na sva društva za zdravstveno osiguranje koja pružaju obvezno zdravstveno osiguranje u Slovačkoj Republici.
While contributions to the compulsory health insurance are collected directly by health insurance companies from employers, the self-employed, self-payers (voluntarily unemployed), the State and the payers of dividends, the distribution of revenues and expenditures among the health insurance companies is unequal due to the different structure of their insured populations.
Dok doprinose za obvezno zdravstveno osiguranje društva za zdravstveno osiguranje izravno prikupljaju od poslodavaca, samozaposlenih, onih koji sami uplaćuju (dobrovoljno nezaposleni), države i isplatitelja dividendi, raspodjela prihoda i rashoda među društvima za zdravstveno osiguranje nejednaka je zbog razlike u strukturi njihove osigurane populacije.
To alleviate the financial burden on health insurance companies with a higher-risk portfolio and to reduce the potential for risk selection, contributions are redistributed among the health insurance companies using the RES, by virtue of a calculation designated by the HSA [32].
Kako bi se olakšalo financijsko opterećenje društava za zdravstveno osiguranje s rizičnijim portfeljem i kako bi se smanjila mogućnost odabira rizika, doprinosi se preraspodjeljuju među društvima za zdravstveno osiguranje pomoću RES-a, prema obračunu koji je osmislila HSA [32].
Parameters applied in the RES are the age, gender and, since 2010, economic activity status of the insured.
Parametri koji se primjenjuju u RES-u jesu dob, spol i, od 2010., status gospodarske aktivnosti osiguranika.
THE TRANSFERS OF PORTFOLIOS TO SZP AND VZP
PRIJENOSI PORTFELJA SZP-u I VZP-u
Another measure which has come to the Commission's attention during its preliminary assessment is the existence of several direct transfers, by intervention of the State, to SZP and VZP of portfolios of other health insurance companies (in particular of the company Družstevná zdravotná poisťovňa to VZP, and of the company Európská zdravotná poisťovňa to SZP) which were liquidated over time.
Druga mjera koja je privukla pažnju Komisije tijekom prethodne procjene postojanje je nekoliko izravnih prijenosa, intervencijom države, SZP-u i VZP-u portfelja ostalih društava za zdravstveno osiguranje (posebno društva Družstevná zdravotná poisťovňa VZP-u i društva Európská zdravotná poisťovňa SZP-u) koja su likvidirana tijekom vremena.
According to the Dôvera, the EZP portfolio was transferred directly to SZP even though there were other interested operators on the market, whereas the limits and conditions of the transfer were unclear.
Prema Dôveri, portfelj EZP-a prenesen je izravno SZP-u premda je na tržištu bilo drugih zainteresiranih operatora, a ograničenja i uvjeti prijenosa bili su nejasni.
The Slovak Republic argues that the decision of the HSA to transfer EZP's portfolio to SZP without any consideration is in line with the provisions of Act No 581/2004 while respecting the right of the insured to choose a health insurance company.
Slovačka Republika tvrdi da je odluka HSA da prenese portfelj EZP-a SZP-u bez razmatranja u skladu s odredbama Zakona br. 581/2004, uz poštivanje prava osiguranika da odaberu društvo za zdravstveno osiguranje.
They claim that other insurance companies have expressed an interest in this portfolio, but with conditions that would have disproportionately prolonged the liquidation process.
Tvrdi da su ostala osiguravajuća društva iskazala interes za ovaj portfelj, ali s uvjetima koji bi nerazmjerno produžili proces likvidacije.
Furthermore, according to the Slovak authorities, since the transfer of portfolios concerned all the claims and all the liabilities of the liquidated companies, no advantage was granted to the recipients VZP and SZP.
Nadalje, prema slovačkim tijelima, s obzirom na to da se prijenos portfelja odnosio na sva potraživanja i sve obveze likvidiranih društava, primateljima VZP-u i SZP-u nije dana nikakva prednost.
In its opening decision, the Commission expressed doubts about determining the economic or non-economic nature of the activity concerned and indicated that, in light of the particularities of the case, SZP/VZP and the other companies offering health insurance in the compulsory system in the Slovak Republic may have been engaged in an economic activity as from 1 January 2005.
Komisija je u svojoj odluci o pokretanju postupka izrazila sumnju o određivanju gospodarskog i negospodarskog karaktera predmetne djelatnosti i naznačila da su, u svjetlu posebnosti slučaja, od 1. siječnja 2005. SZP/VZP i druga društva koja nude zdravstveno osiguranje u obveznom sustavu u Slovačkoj Republici mogla biti uključena u gospodarsku djelatnost.
It considered that the mixture of economic and non-economic features of the Slovak compulsory health insurance system made it necessary to perform an in-depth analysis of its different elements and their respective importance within the scheme to determine whether the activity of compulsory health insurance, in the way it is organised and carried out in Slovakia, is to be considered as economic (as from 1 January 2005) or non-economic in nature.
Komisija je smatrala da je zbog preplitanja gospodarskih i negospodarskih obilježja slovačkog sustava obveznog zdravstvenog osiguranja nužno provesti temeljitu analizu raznih elemenata i njihove važnosti unutar sustava kako bi se odredilo ima li djelatnost obveznog zdravstvenog osiguranja, na način na koji je organizirana i provodi se u Slovačkoj, gospodarski (od 1. siječnja 2005.) ili negospodarski karakter.
The Commission also indicated that — in case the activity would need to be considered as economic in nature — it did not have enough information at its disposal to determine whether the measures under scrutiny provide SZP/VZP with a selective advantage.
Komisija je također navela da – u slučaju da bi djelatnost trebalo smatrati gospodarskom – nije imala na raspolaganju dovoljno informacija kako bi odredila daju li promatrane mjere SZP/VZP-u selektivnu prednost.
Having concluded that it could therefore not exclude the existence of State aid at that stage, in the absence of specific arguments or clear indications as to their compatibility with the internal market, the Commission also expressed doubts as to whether those measures could be considered compatible with the internal market under Article 106(2) or Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty, in the event it would conclude that those measures qualify as State aid.
Zaključivši da stoga ne bi mogla isključiti postojanje državnih potpora u toj fazi, bez posebnih argumenata ili jasnih naznaka o njihovoj sukladnosti s unutarnjim tržištem, Komisija je također izrazila sumnju o tome mogu li se te mjere smatrati sukladnima s unutarnjim tržištem prema članku 106. stavku 2. ili članku 107. stavku 3. točkom (c) Ugovora, u slučaju da zaključi kako se te mjere smatraju državnim potporama.
In that context, the Commission noted that the final conclusion as to whether the activity of compulsory health insurance in the Slovak Republic is indeed economic or non-economic in nature, whether the State measures fulfil all the other conditions to constitute State aid and, if so, whether they are compatible with the internal market could only be drawn in a final decision to be adopted after completion of the formal investigation, when all available information (including further Member State's and third parties' comments) have been collected and an in-depth assessment of all information has been made.
U tom kontekstu Komisija je navela da bi se do konačnog zaključka o tome je li aktivnost obveznog zdravstvenog osiguranja u Slovačkoj Republici uistinu gospodarska ili negospodarska, ispunjavaju li državne mjere sve ostale uvjete da bi predstavljale državne potpore i, ako da, jesu li sukladne s unutarnjim tržištem, moglo samo doći u konačnoj odluci koja će se donijeti po završetku formalne istrage, kada budu prikupljene sve raspoložive informacije (uključujući dodatne primjedbe države članice i trećih strana) i provedena temeljita procjena.
The Commission received the following comments from interested parties, as summarised below:
Komisija je od zainteresiranih strana zaprimila sljedeće primjedbe, kako su sažeto prikazane u nastavku:
In response to the opening decision, Dôvera, the complainant, provided additional information about the health insurance system and additional argumentation in particular to substantiate its view that SZP/VZP are undertakings subject to competition law and have benefitted from incompatible State aid.
Kao odgovor na odluku o pokretanju postupka, Dôvera, podnositelj pritužbe, pružila je dodatne informacije o sustavu zdravstvenog osiguranja i posebno dodatnu argumentaciju kako bi poduprla svoje mišljenje da su SZP/VZP poduzeća koja podliježu zakonu o tržišnom natjecanju i da su iskoristila nesukladne državne potpore.
Dôvera points out that SZP/VZP compete with private health insurance companies offering the same service while seeking profit, referring to its previous submissions on the economic nature of the activity and to recent case-law of the Court [33].
Dôvera ističe da se SZP/VZP natječu s privatnim društvima za zdravstveno osiguranje koja nude istu uslugu dok nastoje ostvariti dobit, pozivajući se na prethodne dopise o gospodarskom karakteru djelatnosti i na najnovije običajno pravo Suda [33].
In this context, Dôvera claims that the several elements presented by the Slovak Republic listed in the opening decision as pointing to the non-economic nature of VZP/SZP activities do not withstand scrutiny.
U ovom kontekstu, Dôvera tvrdi da nekoliko elemenata koje je predstavila Slovačka Republika navedenih u odluci o pokretanju postupka koji ukazuju na negospodarski karakter djelatnosti VZP/SZP-a ne prolaze kontrolu.
According to Dôvera, the 2004-2005 reform was meant to create a competitive market, which has been recognised and confirmed by the Slovak judiciary (i.e. the Slovak Constitutional Court) as well as the Slovak authorities themselves.
Prema Dôveri, reforma iz razdoblja 2004.–2005. bila je namijenjena stvaranju konkurentnog tržišta, što je priznalo i potvrdilo slovačko pravosuđe (tj. slovački Ustavni sud) kao i sama slovačka tijela.
In this context, Dôvera also points to the fact that insurers compete for healthcare providers through selective contracting and negotiations on price and quality of services, and it also mentions marketing campaigns by health insurance companies to retain and attract clients.
U ovom kontekstu, Dôvera također ukazuje na činjenicu da se osiguravatelji natječu za pružatelje zdravstvene skrbi kroz selektivno ugovaranje i pregovore o cijeni i kvaliteti usluga, a također i spominje marketinške kampanje društava za zdravstveno osiguranje radi zadržavanja i privlačenja klijenata.
Dôvera also denies the exclusively social nature of the system, referring to the possibility for health insurers to make and distribute profits and the willingness of private investors to invest in operators active in the Slovak compulsory health insurance sector.
Dôvera također poriče isključivo socijalni karakter sustava, pozivajući se na mogućnost za zdravstvene osiguravatelje da ostvaruju i raspodjeljuju dobit i na spremnost privatnih ulagatelja na ulaganje u operatore koji djeluju u slovačkom sektoru obveznog zdravstvenog osiguranja.
Referring to its previous submissions to the Commission before the opening decision, Dôvera further submits that all measures identified in that decision should be qualified as unlawful aid since all the other elements of Article 107(1) of the Treaty have been fulfilled.
Pozivajući se na svoje prethodne dopise Komisiji prije odluke o otvaranju postupka, Dôvera nadalje tvrdi da bi sve mjere utvrđene u toj odluci trebalo smatrati nezakonitim potporama jer su ispunjeni svi ostali elementi članka 107. stavka 1. Ugovora.
In its view, the Slovak Republic cannot be considered to have acted as a market economy investor when increasing SZP's capital in 2006 and VZP's capital in 2010.
Prema njezinu mišljenju ne može se smatrati da je Slovačka Republika djelovala kao ulagatelj tržišnoga gospodarstva kada je dokapitalizirala SZP u 2006. i VZP u 2010.
In this respect, it states that the Commission may have been misinformed by the Slovak authorities about the applicable legal framework for that portfolio transfer.
U vezi s tim navodi da su slovačka tijela Komisiju možda krivo informirala o važećem pravnom okviru za taj prijenos portfelja.
Dôvera finally argues that the Slovak authorities have failed to demonstrate that the provision of compulsory health insurance is a service of general interest and thereby questions the very basis of an analysis under the Altmark case-law [34] and the Commission's SGEI package.
Dôvera konačno tvrdi da slovačka tijela nisu uspjela dokazati da je pružanje obveznog zdravstvenog osiguranja usluga od općeg interesa pa time propituje samu osnovu analize običajnog prava [34] u predmetu Altmark i SGEI paketu Komisije.
UNION HEALTH INSURANCE
UNION ZDRAVSTVENO OSIGURANJE
The observations on the opening decision submitted by Union Health Insurance, the other privately-owned competitor of SZP/VZP, are broadly in line with the comments provided by Dôvera, arguing that SZP and VZP are undertakings within the meaning of Article 107(1) of the Treaty.
Primjedbe na odluku o pokretanju postupka koje je podnijelo Union zdravstveno osiguranje, drugi privatni konkurent SZP/VZP-a, općenito su u skladu s primjedbama koje je dostavila Dôvera, tvrdeći da su SZP i VZP poduzeća u smislu članka 107. stavka 1. Ugovora.
Union Health Insurance submits that five of the six measures described in Section 3 of this Decision qualify as State aid and are incompatible with the internal market.
Union zdravstveno osiguranje tvrdi da se pet od šest mjera opisanih u odjeljku 3. ove Odluke mogu smatrati državnim potporama i da su nesukladne s unutarnjim tržištem.
As regards the sixth measure, the RES, Union Health Insurance claims that it could potentially fulfil the conditions of the Altmark case-law for public service compensation or may be compatible with the internal market under Article 106(2) of the Treaty, requiring further investigation into its potential discriminatory approach in favour of the net recipient of the RES, i.e. SZP/VZP.
Što se tiče šeste mjere, RES-a, Union zdravstveno osiguranje tvrdi da bi možda mogla ispuniti uvjete običajnog prava u predmetu Altmark za naknadu javne usluge ili može biti sukladna s unutarnjim tržištem prema članku 106. stavku 2. Ugovora, zahtijevajući dodatnu istragu o ovom potencijalno diskriminirajućem pristupu u korist neto primatelja RES-a, tj. SZP/VZP-a.
HPI, INEKO AND ZZP
HPI, INEKO I ZZP