Turkey's Council of State suspends key clauses of Family Medicine payment regulation

On 10 July 2025 the Turkish Council of State (Danıştay) 2nd Chamber ruled to halt the implementation of several contested provisions of the Family Medicine Payment and Contract Regulation that had taken effect the same day. The suspension concerns clauses that reduced doctors’ payment coefficients for patients who had not visited a health centre in the previous 12 months, introduced an undefined Ministry‑determined service‑frequency requirement, applied a non‑transparent patient‑satisfaction scoring system, imposed ambiguous rational‑drug‑use criteria, and mandated a minimum of five night‑shift duties of at least 96 hours in Integrated Family Health Centres.

The Istanbul Family Medicine Association (İSTAHED) said the decision safeguards physicians’ professional autonomy and preserves access to qualified primary‑care services for citizens. It noted that the suspended provisions were re‑published with minor amendments on 6 August 2025, but İSTAHED will continue legal action to seek full annulment of the contested rules.