08 June 2004
He is a man of determination, deeply mindful of the need to improve the standing of physicians, especially in their relations with insurance companies and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF). The rights of doctors, he has said, have been “infringed” because of the policy followed by the LOP for the last six years and he intends to change it. Mario Aoun was born in Damour in 1951. After finishing his secondary schooling at La Sagesse, in Beirut, he studied medicine at the University of Bordeaux, specializing in endocrinology and metabolic illnesses. He returned to Lebanon in 1982 and is today chef de service at the Lebanese Hospital in Jeitawi and is also on the staff of the St. Charles Hospital. He has three principal grievances: the high cost – 15 million dollars – of the new headquarters building of the LOP, the agreements “signed against their best interests” with private insurance companies and the state-run National Social Security Fund (NSSF), and the trade in medications and medical equipment, which he alleges is “controlled by a mafia, which we have to combat”. He is married to Georgine Berberi, and they have three children: Maria 12, Melissa 11 and Aziz 10.
How do explain your striking victory over the strong coalition arrayed against you?
I think my victory reflects the rejection by Lebanese doctors of everything done against their interests. It was a protest vote against the policy the LOP has followed for six years, starting with the order’s new headquarters building, the “Beit al-Tabib”, the cost of which was the origin of the LOP’s present parlous financial position. The building still isn’t finished, and we haven’t yet paid the full cost, which is 15 million dollars. How much did the new headquarters of the Bar Association cost? Five millions. It’s scandalous. I intend to call for an investigation. It may be that there is some political reason for the excessive cost, that the blame doesn’t lie in the association. Whatever the reason, doctors want to know the facts of the situation. The impoverishment of the LOP has deprived them of services to which they have a right.
Lebanese physicians are now in a difficult situation. Their rights have been infringed upon, especially through agreements signed against their interests with the insurance companies and the National Social Security Fund. Physicians feel that they can’t cope with the situation.
Then there’s the problem with the trade in medications, which you can say is in disorder, to put it no more strongly than that. We’ll have to deal with it, in coordination with the Pharmacists’ Association and the Association of Private Hospitals. I wouldn’t hesitate to say that the trade in medications and medical supplies is now controlled by a mafia, which we have to combat.
Can you clarify this point?
We’ve been treated like mere employees of the NSSF. Those who are called “the big doctors” comprise no more than 10 percent of the medical body. The rights and dignity of the rest are not respected. It’s a bit of a bother that in order to obtain reimbursement for the medications they use, they have to keep each box, each container, and go to the NSSP office and wait in line with them to obtain payment. It’s a waste of precious time, if nothing else.
And of course the Social Security doesn’t completely cover a physician’s hospitalization expenses, despite the general perception that doctors are cared for free of charge. Nor do we have end of service benefits, and the monthly allocation to which a retired doctor is entitled is only 600,000 Lebanese pounds [400 dollars], which is only a pittance. I must, through your magazine, inform the public that for our hospitalization, we doctors have to pay three times more than engineers, pharmacists or lawyers.
In addition, by asking doctors to submit detailed reports on each examination they carry out on their patients, insurance companies violate the principle of professional confidentiality. They seem to be suspicious of us, asking us to justify every request we make. It should be enough for a doctor to indicate that a particular patient “requires hospitalization”, without having to spend precious time on explanations.
From the beginning you’ve spoken about “making changes”. What kind of changes are you thinking of?
Certainly not political change, because I think that we shouldn’t politicize the association. What I’m talking about is a change in the general policy of the association. I am an independent physician who wants to defend his colleagues’ interests.
How do you plan to refloat the LOP fund?
So far I have only done in complete analysis of the situation. I don’t have a precise idea about the measures we have to take. I only know that we will meet and discuss all these problems, in order to fight effectively for change.
When you say “fight effectively”, are you saying that you and your members will take to the streets, like the members of the General Labor Confederation?
Why not? We may have to. We may have a hard struggle ahead of us and we should not be afraid to take any measures necessary to secure our rights as doctors. Of course I hope the situation doesn’t deteriorate to that extent.
It is widely thought that supporters of the Future political “current” voted for you even though earlier they had backed your rival, Dr. Michel Abi-Abdallah. What can you say about that?
It was said that the election campaign pitted Shiites against Sunnites, with the first supporting Dr. Samir Mallat, candidate of the Hôtel-Dieu de France, and the second group backing Dr. Abi-Abdallah. When [Prime Minister Rafik] Hariri heard about the situation, he gave his own backers the right to vote for the candidate of their choice.
The last election was heavily politicized, with Sunnite doctors backing a Makassed ticket, Shiite doctors having to choose between Amal and Hezballah, and others wondering whether to back the Progressive Socialists or the Syrian Social Nationalists, etc. I personally back the Free National Current, whose principles I’m proud to profess, but I reject the confessionalization of the LOP’s work. The Free National Current will not enter the LOP’s activities, nor will any other political formation.
A final word
I comply with all laws and regulations and I demand their enforcement on everyone. I’m determined to cooperate with all those concerned for the defense of the medical profession’s interests.
I believe I will face fewer difficulties than my predecessors at the head of the LOP because I speak and act sincerely, and this is what we need. I won’t be making political or personal demands, but demands for the benefit of doctors. I think we can do this effectively.
He is a man of determination, deeply mindful of the need to improve the standing of physicians, especially in their relations with insurance companies and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF). The rights of doctors, he has said, have been “infringed” because of the policy followed by the LOP for the last six years and he intends to change it. Mario Aoun was born in Damour in 1951. After finishing his secondary schooling at La Sagesse, in Beirut, he studied medicine at the University of Bordeaux, specializing in endocrinology and metabolic illnesses. He returned to Lebanon in 1982 and is today chef de service at the Lebanese Hospital in Jeitawi and is also on the staff of the St. Charles Hospital. He has three principal grievances: the high cost – 15 million dollars – of the new headquarters building of the LOP, the agreements “signed against their best interests” with private insurance companies and the state-run National Social Security Fund (NSSF), and the trade in medications and medical equipment, which he alleges is “controlled by a mafia, which we have to combat”. He is married to Georgine Berberi, and they have three children: Maria 12, Melissa 11 and Aziz 10.
How do explain your striking victory over the strong coalition arrayed against you?
I think my victory reflects the rejection by Lebanese doctors of everything done against their interests. It was a protest vote against the policy the LOP has followed for six years, starting with the order’s new headquarters building, the “Beit al-Tabib”, the cost of which was the origin of the LOP’s present parlous financial position. The building still isn’t finished, and we haven’t yet paid the full cost, which is 15 million dollars. How much did the new headquarters of the Bar Association cost? Five millions. It’s scandalous. I intend to call for an investigation. It may be that there is some political reason for the excessive cost, that the blame doesn’t lie in the association. Whatever the reason, doctors want to know the facts of the situation. The impoverishment of the LOP has deprived them of services to which they have a right.
Lebanese physicians are now in a difficult situation. Their rights have been infringed upon, especially through agreements signed against their interests with the insurance companies and the National Social Security Fund. Physicians feel that they can’t cope with the situation.
Then there’s the problem with the trade in medications, which you can say is in disorder, to put it no more strongly than that. We’ll have to deal with it, in coordination with the Pharmacists’ Association and the Association of Private Hospitals. I wouldn’t hesitate to say that the trade in medications and medical supplies is now controlled by a mafia, which we have to combat.
Can you clarify this point?
We’ve been treated like mere employees of the NSSF. Those who are called “the big doctors” comprise no more than 10 percent of the medical body. The rights and dignity of the rest are not respected. It’s a bit of a bother that in order to obtain reimbursement for the medications they use, they have to keep each box, each container, and go to the NSSP office and wait in line with them to obtain payment. It’s a waste of precious time, if nothing else.
And of course the Social Security doesn’t completely cover a physician’s hospitalization expenses, despite the general perception that doctors are cared for free of charge. Nor do we have end of service benefits, and the monthly allocation to which a retired doctor is entitled is only 600,000 Lebanese pounds [400 dollars], which is only a pittance. I must, through your magazine, inform the public that for our hospitalization, we doctors have to pay three times more than engineers, pharmacists or lawyers.
In addition, by asking doctors to submit detailed reports on each examination they carry out on their patients, insurance companies violate the principle of professional confidentiality. They seem to be suspicious of us, asking us to justify every request we make. It should be enough for a doctor to indicate that a particular patient “requires hospitalization”, without having to spend precious time on explanations.
From the beginning you’ve spoken about “making changes”. What kind of changes are you thinking of?
Certainly not political change, because I think that we shouldn’t politicize the association. What I’m talking about is a change in the general policy of the association. I am an independent physician who wants to defend his colleagues’ interests.
How do you plan to refloat the LOP fund?
So far I have only done in complete analysis of the situation. I don’t have a precise idea about the measures we have to take. I only know that we will meet and discuss all these problems, in order to fight effectively for change.
When you say “fight effectively”, are you saying that you and your members will take to the streets, like the members of the General Labor Confederation?
Why not? We may have to. We may have a hard struggle ahead of us and we should not be afraid to take any measures necessary to secure our rights as doctors. Of course I hope the situation doesn’t deteriorate to that extent.
It is widely thought that supporters of the Future political “current” voted for you even though earlier they had backed your rival, Dr. Michel Abi-Abdallah. What can you say about that?
It was said that the election campaign pitted Shiites against Sunnites, with the first supporting Dr. Samir Mallat, candidate of the Hôtel-Dieu de France, and the second group backing Dr. Abi-Abdallah. When [Prime Minister Rafik] Hariri heard about the situation, he gave his own backers the right to vote for the candidate of their choice.
The last election was heavily politicized, with Sunnite doctors backing a Makassed ticket, Shiite doctors having to choose between Amal and Hezballah, and others wondering whether to back the Progressive Socialists or the Syrian Social Nationalists, etc. I personally back the Free National Current, whose principles I’m proud to profess, but I reject the confessionalization of the LOP’s work. The Free National Current will not enter the LOP’s activities, nor will any other political formation.
A final word
I comply with all laws and regulations and I demand their enforcement on everyone. I’m determined to cooperate with all those concerned for the defense of the medical profession’s interests.
I believe I will face fewer difficulties than my predecessors at the head of the LOP because I speak and act sincerely, and this is what we need. I won’t be making political or personal demands, but demands for the benefit of doctors. I think we can do this effectively.
© Monday Morning 2004
