Feasibility of Liberalising the Compulsory Health Insurance Market in the Republic of Moldova

The Independent Think Tank “Expert-Grup” organised a round table to present the study “Feasibility of Liberalising the Compulsory Health Insurance Market in the Republic of Moldova”. The need for such an analytical paper stems from the fact that the imperfections of the current compulsory health insurance (CHI) system are becoming increasingly visible: it has failed to eliminate problems such as the persistence of informal payments, inefficiency in spending health funds, a large number of uninsured people, the outdated infrastructure of the health system, insufficient transparency in the activity of the National Health Insurance Company (CNAM) and shortcomings in the management process. Thus, in recent years there has been more and more discussion, and even pressure, regarding public-private partnership (PPP) in the compulsory health insurance system. The authors of this study, Ana Popa, Programme Director at EXPERT-GRUP, and Veaceslav Cernica, independent expert, set out to assess the feasibility and the balance of advantages and disadvantages of opening the CHI sector to private companies and to identify the most advantageous model for the further functioning of the system, so that the benefits for the population are as large as possible and the risks as small as possible.

Thus, the round table discussed the conditions that must be met for the liberalisation of the compulsory health insurance market, based on the experience of several European states, the readiness of the national system of private insurers to take over this function, as well as several alternative models for organising the health insurance system proposed by the authors.

The round table was attended by representatives of private and state health insurance companies, the chairpersons of the parliamentary committees on economy, budget and finance and on social protection, health and family, and representatives of public authorities. The event took place today, 15 February, in the conference hall of the Jolly Alon hotel, at 14:00.

This event was organised by the Independent Think Tank EXPERT-GRUP within the Joint Programme of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Delegation to the Republic of Moldova “Democracy Support Programme”. Only the authors are responsible for the methodology, statements and conclusions in this document, which do not necessarily coincide with the opinion of the funders.