While it was announced that an agreement with striking employees of Hadassah Medical Organization was signed on Wednesday morning, 19 Adar I 5774, physicians are still striking.

Striking nurses and maintenance staff has agreed to return to work after an interim agreement was signed. The agreement protects salaries up to a 15,000 NIS monthly. The signing of the agreement followed the Tuesday night ‘overnight’, involving strikers sleeping in the halls of the medical facilities. The agreement also freezes any firings until April 14, 2014.

The issues pertaining to bringing doctors back to work appear a bit more complicated. For one thing, they fear the recovery plan being set into place will harm them for it will sorely compromise their ability to treat patients privately, outside of the kupat cholim (HMO) network.

A hearing in the Jerusalem District Court ended without agreement. Justice David Mintz has yet to rule on matter pertaining to non-practice insurance, as the Israel Medical Association told the court that doctors are protected in hospitals around the world and this must be the case here too.

For the time being, the doctors are continuing their strike as the Hadassah organization is trying to address a 1.3 billion NIS debt.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)