Hospital recruitment competitions and pension and salary accumulation extended to 2026

The Minister of Health, Alexandru Rogobete, announced that hospitals will be able to organize competitions and exams to fill vacant or temporarily vacant positions, and the pension and salary accumulation will be maintained in 2026, especially in critical areas such as health. The measure aims to maintain experienced doctors in the system, in the context of an acute staff shortage. According to the minister, the decisions were adopted at the Government meeting, by amending the Health Law and approving a memorandum that explicitly allows the organization of recruitment competitions in healthcare units. "In the Government meeting, we amended the Health Law in exactly this direction. We created the framework for the necessary legislative adjustments, including those related to professional recognition and the issuance of professional certification documents, so that the human resource in health is protected, and the times for issuing documents are as short as possible," Alexandru Rogobete wrote on Facebook. The minister specified that the new provisions clearly establish that the general limitation rules do not apply to the national residency competition or to competitions or exams for filling positions through clinical integration. At the same time, the amendments bring clarifications for doctors and pharmacists who subsequently enter university education. They will be able to continue their clinical activity without additional bureaucracy, the integration being achieved by adapting the employment relationship. By emergency ordinance of the Ministry of Health, the Government will continue in 2026 the possibility of combining pension with salary, with priority in health, education and other systems considered essential. "It is a necessary measure to keep experienced professionals in the system, especially in scarce specialties, where every doctor counts," the minister stressed.

• Facilities for Romanian doctors in the diaspora

Alexandru Rogobete also announced measures to facilitate the return to the country of Romanian doctors in the diaspora, by accelerating professional recognition procedures. "More and more specialists want to return home, attracted by investments in hospitals and modern medical programs. We are eliminating the administrative delays that have kept them on the sidelines for months and are accelerating professional recognition, through fair, transparent and predictable procedures," the minister explained. According to him, the main objective is to strengthen the human resource in the healthcare system and ensure the continuity of medical services, in the context of increasing pressure on public hospitals.