Gov’t calls on Port Said’s private healthcare insurers, providers to sign up for universal healthcare scheme: The Universal Health Insurance Authority (UHIA) will begin in a few days receiving requests from Port Said’s private healthcare providers to sign up to provide services under the new healthcare system, the Finance Ministry said in a statement. Applicants will have to meet certain quality standards set by a newly-formed healthcare regulator responsible for enforcing quality control at hospitals under the scheme and receive certification from said regulator. Requests, along with the required documents, should be emailed to the UHIA.

Background: Finance Ministry officials said in July that the government will contract out healthcare services under the new scheme set by the Universal Healthcare Act to private sector hospitals. Those hospitals will have to abide by a pricing scheme recently set up by the government. The new scheme will be applied across hospitals that have signed up to provide services under the Universal Healthcare Act, including non-profits, university hospitals, and non-Health Ministry affiliated hospitals. Egypt began rolling out the program in Port Said in July. More governorates will be added gradually over the course of the next 11-13 years. EGP 2.1 bn are planned to be spent to deploy the services this fiscal year.