CAIRO — The Egyptian parliament passed a controversial comprehensive health insurance bill on Dec. 18, less than two months after its referral by the Cabinet, without substantive amendment. The bill is to enter into force on June 30, and its provisions gradually implemented over 15 years, starting off in Port Said governorate.

The rushed approval of the measure comes ahead of the presidential election scheduled for early 2018 and the expected candidacy of the incumbent president. Health Minister Ahmed Emad told Al-Monitor, “The draft law received wide support and continuous follow-up by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi until it was approved.”

Under the new law, subscription to health insurance will be mandatory for all citizens, who must purchase it from the government's General Authority for Health Insurance. The state will pay the premiums of those living below the poverty line. The law also provides for the gradual elimination of state-funded medical treatment, a national network run by the Health Ministry for those who cannot afford health insurance as the new insurance system moves toward full implementation.

Three bodies will be established to run the health system: the General Authority for Health Care, to oversee establishing hospitals or health care centers and provide the medical manpower and medications as well as other requirements; the General Authority for Accreditation and Supervision, to assess hospitals' adherence to standards; and the General Authority for Health Insurance (HIO), to administer and oversee financing of the health insurance plan.