Former Polish Health Minister Bartosz Arłukowicz Defends Photo with Dawid Kacprzyk Amid Hospital Scandal

Former health minister and Koalicja Obywatelska MEP Bartosz Arłukowicz was asked on the TV programme "Gość Wydarzeń" about a 2019 photograph taken in Warsaw that shows him with young doctor Dawid Kacprzyk, now a KO councilor. Arłukowicz said he met Kacprzyk while distributing leaflets during local elections, that he does not know him well – "Nie znam Kacprzyka zbyt dobrze" – and that he has many similar photos, adding "Niczego się nie wypieram".

He also addressed the controversy surrounding Warsaw’s South Hospital, where Kacprzyk, as coordinator of the emergency medical service, was alleged to have earned 1.6 million PLN. Arłukowicz noted that the hospital’s entire board and supervisory council were dismissed, rejected attempts to treat former Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński differently, and asserted that "W niczym nie różni się od normalnych obywateli". He argued that the health system’s problems can be solved without massive spending.