Sisi directs to ensure sustainable financial flows for health insurance system

CAIRO - 26 April 2020: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has directed on Sunday to ensure sustainable financial flows for the universal health insurance system.

The president’s directives came during his meeting with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli in the presence of the ministers of justice, finance, health and communication, and information technology, among others.

The meeting reviewed the implementation progress of the universal health insurance system nationwide and procedures adopted to contain the coronavirus consequences, Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said in a statement.

Such directives aim to realize the main goal of this system through providing the best medical and treatment services for all categories of Egyptian citizens, particularly the neediest ones.

The meeting also touched upon the progress of automation and digitization of the universal health insurance system where its first phase is carried out, namely in Port Said.

It also took up the financial position of the health insurance authority and its efforts to increase returns, diverse financing sources, and enter into partnership with leading global health insurance companies.

The meeting also reviewed the current outbreak of Covid-19 in Egypt and the latest developments to provide anti-coronavirus vaccines, Rady added. 

Minister of Health and Population Hala Zayed unveiled early in November the timeline of introducing the comprehensive health insurance system in five governorates.

The system will be introduced in Luxor and Aswan governorates in December, in Ismailiyah in February, and in Suez and South Sinai in March.

For that purpose, seven hospitals and 59 medical units are being upgraded in Luxor; 12 hospitals and 39 medical units are being developed in Ismailiyah; and, 11 hospitals and 112 medical units are being renovated in Aswan. The pilot operation will begin in Ismailiyah in November before the official launching in February.

The numbers of hospitals and medical units to be part of the system in Suez are five and 27, respectively. The figures for South Sinai are eight and 22, respectively. The pilot phase in those governorates starts mid-December prior to the official launching in March.

The system was first introduced in Port Said in August 2019 through 11 hospitals and 32 medical units. It is being introduced gradually in all the 27 governorates until 2032.