Finance minister lauds new health insurance system in Egypt

CAIRO - 15 December 2020: Finance Minister Mohamed Ma’it said Tuesday that a comprehensive health insurance project that was officially launched in Port Said last year is meant to provide integrated health care for all family members. 

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has dotted all the i’s and crossed the t’s to assure a flexible health system, that is high-quality and copes with changes, is in place, Mait said in a statement by the Finance Ministry to mark one year of the official launch. 


Sisi has always stressed the need to safeguard sustainable funding of this system in order to be able to reform health services in Egypt in line with international standards, Ma’it added.


One year since the launch of the comprehensive health care system in the Canal city of Port Said, the government has successfully managed to handle challenges in the way, the minister said, noting that the number of subscribers to the system is growing by the day. 


Indeed, beneficiaries have had easy access to good medical services from eight hospitals, 20 ICUs and 10 central units in the city, Ma’it acknowledged.


The new system helped overcome the problem of overcrowding at ICUs, with families now being geographically admitted to medical centers.


The new system provides comprehensive health care to families without putting further burdens on breadwinners, Ma’it said. Citizens, for example, won’t have to pay more than 300 pounds to undergo the most complicated organ transplant surgery. 


The comprehensive health insurance authority will expand its services in the coming stage through partnering with the private and public sectors so that citizens receive good medical care, the minister assured. 
 

The authority is capable of paying all its financial dues on time, Ma’it said, noting that about 425 million pounds have, so far, been paid. 
 

The financial position of the comprehensive health insurance authority is strong, the minister said, affirming that, based on indicators, they could expand in implementing the new system in new governorates gradually.