Relations between personal doctors and beneficiaries within the General Healthcare System (GeSY) in Cyprus have reached a critical point due to disputes over medical referrals. The Health Insurance Organization (HIO) enforces monthly quotas on referrals as part of a quality compensation criterion for doctors, leading some physicians to delay or deny requests when approaching these limits. Consequently, patients face treatment delays, while some doctors have resorted to unilaterally removing patients from their lists without prior notification to avoid ongoing pressure and conflicts.

The Cyprus Federation of Patient Associations (OSAK), led by Miltos Miltiadou, has acknowledged receiving numerous complaints regarding these practices. While OSAK notes that overall patient satisfaction with the personal doctor system remains high, they have labeled these specific instances of arbitrary removal as unacceptable phenomena. The situation is currently under monitoring by the patient observatory, as stakeholders grapple with the balance between administrative cost-containment measures and the necessity of timely medical care for beneficiaries.