Last week the Tariff Council of Azerbaijan considered the situation with tariffs of some services rendered to population. The Council particularly concerned the tariffs for commercial services in the health system and came to a conclusion that new tariffs can be confirmed after the definition of a list of commercial medical services by the Cabinet of Ministers. The absence of the list, as it was revealed, actually testifies for chaos in the national medical system.
In the beginning of 2006 due to numerous shortages in the organization of commercial medical services, the Department for Licensing and Control over Organization of Medical Aid of the Health Ministry jointly with the Tariff Council developed calculation of prices for different services for people referred to different categories with respect to regulate prices of commercial services. The calculation covers over 4,000 medical establishments.
As to rise in tariffs of public utilities, the Tariff Council decided not to consider further increase of tariffs without conduct of researches in this spheres. S, the government intends to approach carefully to the issue on increase of tariffs in the sector of public utilities, despite the World Bank's obligations by 2010 up to the level of direct cost. Basically, the tariffs should be in line with the world tariffs, but if the salaries and pensions are also meet the world standards. The government's policy in this stage targets approaching the issue with slow steps (it is dealt with the increase of tariffs, unfortunately). The head of the Tariff Council, the Minister for Economic Development, Heydar Babayev, said that it is necessary bring an order in this sector, the community incomes should increase and after the tariffs can be raised.