Expert: New concept of universal health insurance does not involve mandatory participation of employers

17:24   2 December, 2022

The new concept of universal health insurance in Armenia doesn't imply obligatory participation of employers in insuring the health of their employees, Samvel Kharazyan, the expert on health financing at the Health Ministry, told journalists during a press conference today.

David Melik-Nubaryan, public health expert, stressed during the press conference that employers' participation in financing universal health insurance is very important, as employees generate employers' income and employers must have a direct interest towards their employees' health. He gave an example of European countries, where employers assume the bulk of the cost of health insurance for their employees.

Samvel Kharazyan explained that earlier it was suggested to partially shift the burden of health insurance payments for employees to employers, but the finalized version of the Concept leaves this issue to their discretion.

"We are going the way of encouragement, and we are leaving this issue to employers, giving them the opportunity to voluntarily participate in health insurance for their employees, and thus making it more attractive to work in their company. In doing so, the tax incentives that are already in place for employers who buy health insurance for their employees from private insurance companies will remain in place. And we hope that those companies that are now paying for insurance for their employees will continue to do so with the transition to universal compulsory insurance, and other employers will join them too," he said.

Universal Health Insurance will be introduced in Armenia step by step from 2023 to 2027. The amount of the insurance package and the insurance payments will be finally set in 2023 based on the analysis of the 2022 results.




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