Moving forward: lessons for Cyprus as it implements its health insurance scheme

The Republic of Cyprus is the only country in the European Union (EU) whose health system is comprised of public and private sectors of relatively similar sizes. The division within the health system, combined with a lack of efficient payment mechanisms and monitoring systems, contributes to inequalities in access to care, and inefficient allocation and utilization of resources. In part to address these issues, a new General Health Insurance Scheme (GHIS), was proposed by stakeholders from the Cypriot government along with a team of international consultants in 1992 and eventually approved by the Parliament in 2001. However implementation of the GHIS has been repeatedly delayed since that time due to cost concerns. In 2012, following recommendations by the European Commission, the Cypriot Cabinet decided to recommit to the reform. In light of this development, the recent Cyprus application for accession to the EU support mechanism due to the economic crisis, and the international spotlight associated with Cyprus’ EU Presidency, this article discusses the anticipated Cypriot health system reform—which is now slated to go into effect in 2016—and examines lessons from other countries.