REFUND FOR CANCELLED TRAVEL DURING THE PANDEMIC: COMMISSION DECIDES TO REFER SLOVAKIA TO THE COURT OF JUSTICE

Purpose. The purpose of the article is to assess the conformity of the Slovak solutions with regard to refunds for cancelled travels and their conformity with EU law, i.e. the Package Travel Directive. In the article, the position is analysed of the European Commission and its reflection to Slovak legislation on refunds of travels after cancellation of the breach concerning travels by the travel agencies. Method. Legal analyses regarding the Slovak amendment of Package Travel Act and comparison of its provisions with the Package Travel Directive. Findings. In the article, the way is described as to how the Slovak legislator solved the reimbursement for cancelled travels due to pandemic situation. Also provided is the statement regarding the reasoned opinion of the European Commission that followed the adoption of the amendment of the Slovak Package Travel Act. The authors analyse compatibility of the COVID PTA Amendment with European Union law. In the article, it is described that due to time constraints set by the COVID PTA Amendment for refund because of cancelled travels, non-compliance with EU legislation had probably expired by September 2021. Research and conclusions limitations. The research was focused on EU (Package Travel Directive) and Slovak legislation (Package Travel Act) and assessment of compliance of Slovak with EU law. Practical implications. The article draws attention to the question whether some effects of the COVID PTA Amendment will persist after September 2021 provided that the topical purpose of this legislation to postpone refund for travellers has already been accomplished by setting the deadline for 14 September 2021. Secondly, it raises the question of possible damage suffered by the individuals due to the breach of EU law by the Slovak Republic. Originality. As the article is focused on the most current situation, this topic has not been discussed by other authors in other studies. The authors assume a view that makes assessment regarding legality of the Slovak amendment for Package Travel Act with EU law. Type of paper. Research paper.

Sustainability of the Breastfeeding-Friendly Primary Care Initiative: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT Objectives: to assess the sustainability of the Breastfeeding-Friendly Primary Care Initiative by analyzing compliance with the Ten Steps in accredited units; and association with maternal satisfaction and exclusive breastfeeding. Methods: a cross-sectional study conducted in 2016. An assessment of compliance, conducted by interviews with health professionals, pregnant women, and mothers. An association between compliance and satisfaction, analyzed by Spearman›s correlation test; and association between contextual/individual characteristics and exclusive breastfeeding, by the multilevel Poisson regression. Results: compliance was 5.4-10 points and satisfaction was 36.8%-100%. Prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding was 56.7%. There was a correlation between compliance and satisfaction. Higher education, prenatal orientation, hospital discharge on exclusive breastfeeding, attendance in mixed units, and female gender of the child were associated with higher prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding; on the other hand, increasing age and pacifier use were associated with lower prevalence. Conclusions: the Initiative proved to be sustainable; compliance with the Ten Steps was high and was reflected in maternal satisfaction.