VIDEO: We Should Be Happy That the Health Status Has Improved – Minister on Withholding Compensation from Lieutenant Who Lost His Leg

I am aware of that post and that issue. It is a very painful problem because after the war, when disability statuses were granted to people, there is a defined period during which individuals must undergo examination according to established procedures. This was stated today, on July 12, in a conversation with journalists in the National Assembly by the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Narek Mkrtchyan, referring to the case of Lieutenant Aram Kalantaryan, who lost his leg in the 44-day war and has had his disability status changed, resulting in the loss of compensation.

The minister noted that the disability status is not granted as a result of a political decision: “There is a classification of diseases established by the World Health Organization. When our doctors change the disability status of individuals who were injured in the war from the second category to the third, it is done in accordance with those classifiers. This means that there has been an improvement in their health condition. This should be viewed as positive dynamics. There is a prescribed procedure; if the examination results are insufficient, they may apply for re-examination. If it is still inadequate, they can appeal to the ministry, and if that also does not yield results, they can appeal judicially,” said Narek Mkrtchyan.

In response to the question of whether it is an adequate explanation to tell a person who has lost one leg that they still have one and do not have accompanying illnesses, the minister replied: “When a person has an amputation of the upper or lower limb, it is the duty of the state to provide resources to restore their vital functions. We have provided them with functional prostheses. If you restore their vital functions with that prosthesis, you make that person functional, capable of working and expressing themselves. We should be happy that there has been an improvement in their health condition over this past year.”