In Uganda, voucher schemes improved access to family planning (FP) and maternal newborn health (MNH) services for poor women in rural areas. This was largely due to their targeted approach of improving access to high-quality services. On the national stage, voucher...
How Primary Health Care Services Are Financed in Uganda: A Review of the Purchasing Landscape (September 2020)
In the context of health systems, purchasing refers to the allocation of pooled funds to providers of services on behalf of a population. The World Health Report 2000 pushed forward the idea that countries should move beyond passive purchasing, where the purchaser...

State Health Insurance Fund of Uzbekistan has announced piloting state health insurance for the first time in the nation
Among the Post-Soviet countries, historically only the Government was responsible for ensuring universal access to health care. But over time the governments failed to fund health care systems at a level that would ensure not only universal access, but also...

Vietnam’s Rural Population Enjoys Better Healthcare Services Thanks to Smart Investment in Hospital Upgrading
https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2021/03/01/vietnams-rural-populace-enjoys-better-healthcare-services

Significance, practicality of Vietnam health insurance in the COVID-19 era
https://vss.gov.vn/english/news/Pages/vietnam-social-security.aspx?ItemID=9820&CateID=198

Guinea Covid 19: free treatment for patients
The French Ministry of Health has clarified the hospitalization and treatment of people infected with Covid-19. In a press release, the department informs the country's public and private facilities that treatment of patients is free of charge and must only be...

Fighting Covid19 in Madagascar: A $264 million plan
The national vaccination deployment plan , drawn up jointly by the Ministry of Public Health and Madagascar's National Academy of Medicine, sets out a three-year plan for vaccination against Covid-19 in Madagascar. The first phase begins this Friday, with the...

How can decades of learning from voucher schemes in Uganda inform ongoing purchasing reforms?
This blog highlights an extensive study of the latest two reproductive, maternal, and newborn health (RMNH) voucher schemes in Uganda conducted jointly by the Uganda Ministry of Health and the Strategic Purchasing for Primary Health Care project implemented by...

The Indonesian Government extends compensation for COVID-19 Vaccine side effects through its National Health Insurance Scheme
Indonesian citizens who experience post-COVID 19 immunization incidents that require treatment and medical care and/or lead to disability and death will now receive guaranteed compensation from the government. Active National Health Insurance (JKN) program...

Azerbaijan’s compulsory health insurance expanded to 100% of population from April 1, 2021
Starting from April 1, 2021, compulsory health insurance covers the entire population of the country, spanning to all of its cities and regions. The “service envelope” (basic benefits package) includes primary care, emergency care, specialized outpatient care,...

Vietnam’s social insurance industry to actively coordinate to strengthen COVID-19 epidemic prevention regarding medical care under health insurance
https://vss.gov.vn/english/news/Pages/vietnam-social-security.aspx?CateID=198&ItemID=9800

Health Protection extended to people working amid high risk of contracting COVID-19
The Department of Labor and Employment said COVID-19 has been included in the list of occupational and work-related diseases. This means workers who were infected by the virus could receive compensation via the Employees' Compensation Commission (ECC) provided they...

NHSO to provide financial protection against potential adverse health impact from COVID 19 vaccine
The National Health Security Office (NHSO) is preparing to roll out assistance to people who have suffered side effects from Covid-19 vaccines. While vaccines could help decrease the number of Covid-19 patients in hospitals and ease the burden on the...

Impact of COVID-19 on health care utilization and medical expenditure in the Republic of Korea in 2020
Written by Eunkyoung Kim and Tomas Roubal The Republic of Korea (ROK) has been regarded as one of successful countries in their response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). As of 28 April 2021, ROK has reported 120,673 cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases and 1,821...

New $2,000 payout for those who need hospitalisation after Covid-19 vaccine shot
Those who suffer from serious side effects related to their Covid-19 vaccination can apply for financial assistance from Wednesday (March 17). Their applications under the Vaccine Injury Financial Assistance Programme for Covid-19 vaccination (Vifap) will...