Draft law “On compulsory medical insurance” published

On the portal of discussions of normative-legal acts, the draft law “On compulsory medical insurance” has been published.

The draft law “On compulsory medical insurance” was developed pursuant to paragraph 4 of the program of measures to implement the Concept of healthcare development in 2019-2021, approved by the presidential decree “On measures to fundamentally improve the healthcare system of the Republic of Uzbekistan”.

It should be recalled that the president, until January 1, 2021, instructed to gradually introduce compulsory medical insurance in Uzbekistan. At the same time, it was entrusted to develop a draft law “On compulsory medical insurance”, providing for:

- legal framework, mechanisms and stages of the introduction of compulsory medical insurance;

- determining subjects of compulsory medical insurance and the authorized body for regulation of legal relations in this area, their rights and obligations;

- sources of funds for the financing of compulsory medical insurance programs.

The draft law was developed on the basis of the analysis of foreign countries’ legislative acts, as well as a feasibility studies of measures for the introduction of compulsory medical insurance. It structurally consists of 5 chapters, combining 42 articles. The purpose of the law is to regulate social relations arising in the field of compulsory medical insurance in order to exercise the constitutional rights of citizens to receive qualified medical care and establish legal, organizational, financial bases and principles of compulsory medical insurance.

Subjects of compulsory medical insurance are insured persons, payers, compulsory medical insurance fund. In this case, the insured persons include:

- citizens of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

- foreign citizens and stateless persons permanently residing in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as persons equivalent to them;

- foreign investors who received an entry “investment visa” in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as their parents, spouses and children.

Separate articles define the rights of insured persons. A list of persons equal to payers and additional rights of payers are also defined.

Participants in compulsory medical insurance include organizations, institutions and bodies that are not parties to compulsory medical insurance, but are directly involved in these relationships. In particular, the basic rights, duties and functions of healthcare providers, the Ministry of Health and the Cabinet of Ministers are described.

Chapter 4 of the aforementioned bill defines the procedure for rendering medical services in the field of compulsory medical insurance, securing the rights of insured persons to choose a healthcare provider, the procedure for redirecting insured persons to another provider, the right to receive a secondary opinion, the basic rules for keeping records of insured persons, making payments and confidentiality of information.

A full text of the bill can be learnt here.