In Kazakhstan, the compensation for the participants of the National Preventive Mechanism has been changed
The National Center for Human Rights of Kazakhstan submitted for public discussion a draft resolution on amendments and additions to the Rules for reimbursing expenses to participants in the National Preventive Mechanism for preventive visits.
According to the draft resolution, it is proposed to ensure reimbursement of the overhead costs of participants in the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) for medical and laboratory examinations, personal protective equipment (medical masks, disposable gloves, medical protective shield, disposable protective overalls) during the period of restrictive measures, including quarantine, which were introduced by the decision of the chief state sanitary doctor of the country or his deputies upon occurrence, threat of importation and spread of infectious diseases in an amount not exceeding five minimum estimate indicators for each participant in the national preventive mechanism who carried out a preventive visit. It should be noted that today the minimum estimate indicator is $ 5.8.
According to the explanatory note to the Decree, in 2020, the NPM’s participants have to visit 494 institutions. For these purposes, $ 128,000 has been allocated from the republican budget. As of September 1st, 323 visits have been made, so 177 visits should be made until the end of the year. However, 60 institutions require a negative PCR test for COVID-19 for preventive visits. In view of the circumstances that at least three NPM’s participants are involved in one visit, laboratory examinations will be required 180 times.
According to the financial calculations attached to the draft resolution, it is planned to spend about $ 5.5 thousand for these purposes. So for preventive visits to 60 institutions, three participants of the National Preventive Mechanism will be compensated for the costs of purchasing 3-layer medical masks, medical gloves, protective overalls, face shields, as well as the PCR test.
At the same time, the resolution notes that the payment of these costs will not entail additional burden on the budget. The fact is that $ 12 thousand was provided for compensation of expenses for the purchase of stationery by the NPM’s participants. However, during 9 months only $ 432 was spent for these purposes. The remaining money was reallocated to medical and laboratory examinations and the purchase of personal protective equipment.
The National Preventive Mechanism is a kind of public control for the prevention of torture, and its participants are citizens of Kazakhstan who are not judges, lawyers, government officials or law enforcement officers. The activities of the NPM’s participants are financed from the republican budget, the administrator of the corresponding program is the Ministry of Justice of Kazakhstan.
