En el caso de que un residente en el extranjero traslade su domicilio a otro pais o demarcacion consular debera darse de alta en el Registro de Matricula correspondiente del Consulado de su nueva residencia.

After the return of democracy, the Ministry of Health was reconstructed and the National Institute of Public Health Care (INSALUD) was created, which assumes the managerial functions of public health care and depends on both the Ministry of Health, in all that concerns public health care organization and policy, and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, in all that concerns patrimonial aspects, budget financing and management and economic control.

In 1982, INSALUD covered 86% of the Spanish population and 31% of hospital beds, which were in the best equipped hospitals in the country.

During its first legislative period in power, the PSOE established Health Care Reform by means of different directives that culminated in the General Law of Public Health Care of 1986. This modification represented the consummnation of a change in philosophy, which passed from a system of public health care based on insurance to a public service open yo everyone, independent of the amount of the contributions of each of its members. The task of building the National Public Health Law, a number of different bodies had to come to an agreement: public administration -Autonomous Communities, local corporations-, those groups providing the services -doctors, hospital staff, privately contracted people, etc.- . To reach this agreement, the Interterritorial Council of the National Public Health System began functioning in 1987 as a consultative body for the harmonization of health care policies of the State and Autonomous Communities administrations.

The near universalization of health services -98.9% of the population has the right to receive health service free of charge- together with the growing demands of the population and the generalized incorporation of new technologies have produced a huge increase in health spending. All this means that the National Health System is at present undergoing changes and new assessments.

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