The Cambodian National Social Security Fund (NSSF) was established in 2008 based on the provisions of the Social Security Law adopted by the National Assembly in 2002. While the health insurance branch of the fund initially covered mainly benefits for employees in the formal private sector, about 2,5 million Cambodians were covered by health equity funds (HEF), non-contributory social health protection schemes that reimburse providers for costs incurred by poor people seeking services at public healthcare facilities. To develop a comprehensive social health insurance system for formal private employees, and public employees (both operated by NSSF) and informal sector workers, the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) endorsed the National Social Protection Policy Framework 2016-2025 (NSPPF) in July 2017. The Policy was intended to set the vision for the future development and management of the country’s social protection system, including the creation of a roadmap for UHC and a health fund for poor and vulnerable people.
In this context, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), in its role as a World Health Organization (WHO) collaborating centre for health system strengthening and health financing for universal health coverage (UHC), conducted a study on the management of several systems and purchasing decisions by the Cambodian National Security Fund. It comprises the findings of an assessment of the co-management of different social health insurance schemes by the NSSF between January and March 2019, focusing primarily on the strategic purchasing of health services from public and private health providers in Cambodia. The objective of the study is to provide recommendations for approaches that will enable a smooth transition of the managerial authority of health equity funds from the Ministry of Health (MOH) to NSSF as envisaged in the National Social Security Planning Framework (2016-25).
Detailed information can be found in the attached document.
