Czech president signs bill on public health

President Vaclav Klaus has signed an amendment to the law on public health under which doctors from EU countries, who temporarily work in the Czech Republic, will not have to pay membership fees to professional chambers - a fact previously criticised by the European Court of Justice which ruled in January the Czech Republic had failed to harmonise its legislation with EU law in this respect. The amendment also enables patients to see their medical records and make copies of them. Patients' relatives will have access to their medical records after their death, including information on the cause of death and the autopsy results, unless the patient explicitly forbids it. So far doctors were obliged to inform patients on their health condition, but they did not have to show their medical records to them.