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Health Insurance Body Outlines Strategy

Health Insurance Body Outlines Strategy
Health Insurance Body Outlines Strategy

Public awareness about health services aimed at empowerment of those under the insurance umbrella, and creating effective strategy to provide health services based on clinical protocols, and standards were outlined as two main approaches of the Iran Health Insurance Organization for the new Iranian year (started March 21), president of the organization Anooshiravan Mohseni-Bandpey said.

On measures taken by the organization over the past year, he said, “Comprehensive health insurance coverage, financial support for the sick, and promoting quality services were the three main missions of the organization,” the Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency quoted him as saying.

Population covered by the organization in rural areas, tribes and cities with less than 20,000 people  pay only 3% of the cost of in-patient services while the rest with medical insurance policy pay 7%, he added.

Referring to the policies announced by President Hassan Rouhani regarding effective and efficient health insurance for all Iranians, he said, “Several initiatives were initiated by the organization over the past year to improve quality and efficiency of medical insurance, namely dental services, joint replacements for the elderly, rehabilitation of addicts, and care/coverage of the terminally ill.

His organization will strive to prevent imposing extra costs on those needing medical care in the current year and use its financial resources judiciously, the official said.

The cost of health and medical services shot up in Iran over the past years to the extent that some special treatments became prohibitive for almost all fixed-wage earners and those at the lower-end of the economic ladder, despite having insurance coverage. After taking office in the summer of 2013, the Rouhani administration vowed to streamline medical costs and boost the efficiency of medical insurance services that have long been under strong criticism by large sections of the society.

Financialtribune.com