A meeting was held in Shymkent with the participation of heads of medical organizations to discuss the draft of the new Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The important meeting was attended by the head of the department Kairat Kalibekov, the representative of the Human Rights Commissioner for Shymkent Nurzhan Abdezov, as well as leading specialists in the healthcare sector.

During the meeting, the draft of the new Constitution was widely presented to representatives of the medical profession, and its role in improving the state governance system and protecting the rights and freedoms of citizens was discussed in detail. The participants noted that the document was developed in accordance with the new stage of the country's development.

According to the participants of the meeting, the new draft Constitution is an important document based on public demand and aimed at socio-economic and legal development. In particular, the norms related to the healthcare sector attracted special attention from medical workers.

During the discussion, special attention was paid to Article 32 of the draft Constitution, i.e. the right of citizens to health protection and the mechanisms for its implementation. According to the draft, the rights of citizens in the field of health protection are ensured in two main directions. In particular, the right to receive free medical care within the limits established by law is preserved, as well as the possibility of using paid medical services in the manner prescribed by law.

Gulnar Kurmanbekova, the chief physician of the city's emergency room, emphasized the social significance of the changes in the new draft Constitution and called on medical workers to support the project.

– The right of citizens to receive medical care will remain unchanged within the scope established by law. The proposed changes are aimed at clarifying social guarantees and strengthening them from a legal perspective. This will give a positive impetus to the sustainable development of the healthcare system, – he said.

In addition, the meeting emphasized that the draft new Constitution is a people-oriented document. It identifies human rights as a strategic priority of the state. It was noted that the special attention paid to the areas of healthcare, education, and science is a clear reflection of this direction.

Nurzhan Abdezov, the representative of the Human Rights Commissioner for Shymkent, who delivered the closing speech, noted that international experience had been comprehensively studied during the development of the new draft Constitution.

– In many countries, the right of citizens to medical care is ensured through a combination of constitutional guarantees and sectoral legislation. Kazakhstan is also building on this best practice. The main goal of the proposed changes is to strengthen the legal framework of the healthcare sector, preserve existing social guarantees, and ensure the long-term sustainability of medical care. The new Constitution clearly establishes healthcare as one of the main responsibilities of the state to its citizens, he said.

At the conclusion of the meeting, representatives of the medical profession expressed their support for the new draft Constitution, noting that the new draft Constitution will positively contribute to protecting citizens' rights to healthcare and improving the accessibility and quality of medical services.