02 March 2021 11:46

Opportunities for cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey in the field of mandatory health insurance have been discussed

A working meeting was held with the participation of the representatives of the State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance (Agency), the Social Protection Institute and the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Services of the Republic of Türkiye and the Embassy of the Republic of Türkiye in the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The provisions of the action plan of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation between the two countries related to mandatory health insurance; in addition, opportunities of cooperation in the field of mandatory health insurance were discussed at the online meeting. It should be mentioned that the Commission was established in accordance with the "Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement between the Government of Azerbaijan, and the Government of Türkiye" signed on November 2, 1992 in Ankara.

Muhiddin Shahin, the head of the Strategic Development Department of the Social Protection Institute of the Republic of Türkiye stated, that as a result of the implemented healthcare reforms, today the universal health insurance system of Türkiye is one of the most advanced systems in the world. “Currently, more than 99.5% of the population is covered by universal health insurance.”

Amine Yujedal, the representative of the Social Protection Institute informed the participants of the meeting about the activities, the structure of the Agency, the persons covered by universal health insurance in her country, the amount of insurance premiums and other details of the healthcare system: “Our purpose is to increase the scope of financed health services, control the equal and fair access to these services, and also ensure the effective and efficient use of resources”.

Vugar Gourbanov, the head of the Medical Claims Department of the Agency provided detailed information on the implementation of mandatory health insurance in Azerbaijan: “Currently, the relevant measures are being taken to ensure equal access of the population to the Benefit Package covering 2550 medical services. Our purpose is to provide high quality services for the population. We are sure that we will benefit from the experience of this friendly and brotherly country, which has achieved great success in this field”.

Araz Nasirov, head of the Strategic Analysis Department of the Agency said, that the aim of the mandatory health insurance was to build the financing system for healthcare on a new economic basis; ensure accessibility of medical services and protect the population against possible financial risks associated with health. A. Nasirov provided information on the priorities of cooperation in the field of mandatory healthy insurance: “The Agency is interested in studying and applying the experience of Türkiye for the improvement of family doctor institutions, increasing the skills and knowledge of medical personnel on the use of medical equipment and development of national quality standards for improving the quality of medical services, in order to strengthen the primary health care services”.

At the end of the meeting the participants agreed to continue working consultations between the two organizations in order to expand their cooperation.