YEREVAN, OCTOBER 20, NOYAN TAPAN. Sums allocated from the state budget to the health sphere are increasing year by year, thus, 16 bln drams (nearly 3.5 mln USD) was allocated in 2002, 21 bln drams in 2003, 25 bln drams in 2004, 32.1 bln drams in 2005, 39.1 bln drams will be allocated in 2006 and 50 bln drams in 2007. Norayr Davidian, RA Health Minister, reported this at the "Human Health" 4th national scientific-medical congress being held on October 19-21 in Yerevan. He noted that these tendencies of increase in financing will have an immediate impact on the quality and affordability of medical service. According to him, a special attention is paid to the primary health protection of population by means of the ambulatory-polyclinical link. The financing of the primary health protection by 2006 draft budget increased by about 25% compared with 2005. Davidian noted that starting from 2006 all layers of society will receive free medical service in the ambulatory-polyclinical link, with the exception of the stomatological service, which will be free only for children under 8, those included in the group of socially insecure people, as well as people aged 65 and above. According to the draft budget, in 2006 the average monthly salary of physicians, pediatricians and family doctors will increase and make 58.4 thousand drams. And the salary of narrow specialists will increase up to 50 thousand drams. 180 scientific works on almost all spheres of medicine will be presented at the "Human Health" 4th national scientific-medical congress.

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