KS Health Insurance Fund Director Fails to Submit Reports to Supervisory Board, Who Controls Spending?

Patria journalists have reviewed documentation submitted by the Supervisory Board of the Sarajevo Canton Health Insurance Fund to several competent authorities, which outlines serious objections to the Fund's operations.

The documentation states that the Supervisory Board has not been allowed to work or enter the Fund's premises. The expert services of the KS Health Insurance Fund did not provide the Supervisory Board with the requested documents during 2016, despite their obligation to do so.

The documentation further states that the Fund's director (Samir Turković, editor's note) continuously found reasons to prevent the Supervisory Board from entering the Fund's premises. The Supervisory Board has verbally and in writing warned the Minister of Health of Sarajevo Canton, the Management Board of the Sarajevo Canton Health Insurance Fund, the Government of Sarajevo Canton, and the Prime Minister about these problems, the documentation further states.

- There was no reaction from the aforementioned bodies. We experienced administrative silence – the Supervisory Board's reports state.

- The Supervisory Board requested periodic calculations that were supposed to be prepared in accordance with the provisions of the Rulebook on Financial Reporting, along with the Fund's reports on the execution of the Financial Plan for the prescribed reporting periods. In addition to the aforementioned financial reports, the Supervisory Board was prevented from controlling and analyzing public procurement, tenders, obtained approvals, employment policies, and monitoring all costs and fees for work in commissions and working bodies appointed by the Ministry of Health of Sarajevo Canton.

The Supervisory Board of the KS Health Insurance Fund was prevented from entering the Fund because thorough information and data on the complete operations for 2016 were requested – it is stated.

There are a number of unanswered questions from the KS Health Insurance Fund. How is it possible that the director does not allow the Supervisory Board to control the Fund's operations? Citizens have no insight into how the Fund's money, financed by citizens, is being spent. Why are the competent institutions remaining silent?

The KS Health Insurance Fund was also recently shaken by a scandal, after it was discovered that the Fund had printed hundreds of thousands of electronic health cards with an incorrect coat of arms of Sarajevo Canton. The cards were paid for with taxpayers' money. No one has yet been held accountable for this scandal.