Health Minister Ariel Bosso accepted the recommendation of his office's Director General, Moshe Bar Siman Tov, and decided to appoint an external committee to examine the conduct of the Clalit Health Fund's board of directors. This was after concerns arose about the fund's stability and proper conduct.
According to a report in Kan News, the review committee will submit its recommendations in about a month.
This is an exceptional step that has never been taken before.
The National Health Insurance Law grants the minister the authority to appoint an inspection committee, and after submitting its conclusions, he may, among other things, appoint a licensed manager, suspend an officer, and appoint an accompanying accountant.
The unusual step came following a series of retirements of senior executives at the fund, including three CEOs who resigned before the end of their terms since Yohanan Locker was appointed chairman of the board in 2020. Three senior vice presidents at the fund also left their positions in recent months.
After the resignation of the fund's CEO Eli Cohen, Health Ministry Director General Bar Siman Tov sent a harsh letter to Board Chairman Locker - in which he announced that he was prohibiting him from advancing the appointment process for a new CEO.
In addition, Bar Siman Tov expressed serious concern about the stability of the fund and demanded that it provide explanations for the series of departures.
According to a senior source at the Ministry of Health, the chairman of the board of directors claimed in response to the letter that there were no deficiencies in his work. "We gave the board of directors an opportunity to acknowledge the failures and correct them, but the detailed letter they sent us and the response in the conversation we had with them was that the change of directors does not harm the conduct of the fund," the source said.
According to the senior official, "This is a harsh statement that indicates a misunderstanding of the issue, and therefore we have moved towards the investigation committee."
The Clalit Health Fund responded: "This is an unnecessary and unprecedented committee, especially given the constant praise that the Ministry of Health management has given the fund for its performance in recent years. We intend to focus on the work of retired Supreme Court Justice Yoram Danziger, who is also accepted by the Director General of the Ministry of Health and is expected to submit his recommendations shortly."
"We are confident that after the Ministry of Health receives the recommendations, it will find that there is no room for the committee's work. Clalit will continue to be the leading institution in the Israeli healthcare system and will faithfully serve its clients."
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