The National Board of Social Insurance held its first open conference last Thursday to discuss nine areas of concern, including the incidence and prevalence of flu in Mongolia and medication costs. As the flu season has begun,  increasing number of children are being affected. The national board, Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Social Security and Labor decided to provide flu medication for children under the age of five free of charge and cover all medical costs of children admitted to hospitals. It was decided at the meeting that the government would allocate 1.5 billion MNT for providing free medication and treatment to influenza patients aged under five. The same discount will apply at some private hospitals operating under contract with the Ministry of Health and General Social Insurance Office. A government spokesperson underlined that the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Social Security and Labor are preparing to issue a resolution shortly.

210,000 MNT DISCOUNT TO BECOME AVAILABLE FOR HEPATITIS C TREATMENT

The  proposed to provide a discount for Hepatitis C treatment and medication was raised at the National Board of Social Insurance’s open conference in relation to a health goal in the Government Action Plan 2020 to eradicate Hepatitis C within the country. Statistics show that 10 percent of the Mongolian population was affected by Hepatitis C in 2016. Medical records indicate that 98.9 percent of 4,681 patients, aged 18 and older who took Hepatitis C medication, were able to see positive results. The board decided to provide a discount of 210,000 MNT for Hepatitis C medication. There are five different types of Hepatitis C medications sold in Mongolia with prices ranging from 300,000 MNT to 728,000 MNT. The discount will become available once the National Board of Social Insurance and Ministry of Health issue a joint regulation.

FINANCIAL REPORT OF SOCIAL INSURANCE FUND RELEASED

The National Board of Social Insurance discussed the general report on social insurance fund’s financing and spending in the first half of 2016, during Thursday’s conference. According to the board, there are 1,506 investigators and employees working at 34 central and regional social insurance organizations. In the first six months of 2016, a total of 765,000 people were insured and 634.6 billion MNT was collected to the fund, which is 2.1 percent higher than the projected amount. Furthermore, 816.5 billion MNT was reportedly distributed to over 3.13 million insured people for pension, benefits and medical assistance. The National Board of Social Insurance decided to organize an open meeting once every season.