The grant, which is financed by the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction and administered by ADB, will strengthen the institutional and human resources capacity and governance of the Health Insurance Organization and the Health Insurance Sub-Council.
Under the grant, ADB will recruit several experts in social health insurance policy and
management, governance, and capacity building to help achieve the objectives of the project.
“With better-trained planners and workers, these institutions will effectively address the needs
of the people, especially the poor, the unemployed and the herders,” said Claude Bodart, Principal Health Specialist in ADB’s East Asia Department.
Since its establishment in 1994, Mongolia’s health insurance system has grown to cover 90% of the population. However, many of those insured are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the system because of poor service quality provided by hospitals and increasing out-of-pocket expenditures.
The Health Insurance Organization currently has limited capacity, particularly in terms of service costing, actuarial projections, contract negotiations and monitoring the quality of services.
Being just one of the departments under the Social Insurance General Office, it is subject to legal restrictions when it comes to staff and operational resource allotment.
The grant will also help train members of the Health Insurance Sub-Council on social
consensus and policy on social health insurance. The Sub-Council acts as a multi-sectoral oversight body for the Health Insurance Organization.
Mongolia’s parliament is currently revising the Citizens’ Health Insurance Law. It is envisaged to introduce broad reforms to improve governance and financial sustainability; improve targeting of government subsidies; increase access to an essential benefits package; strengthen the autonomy and operational capacity of the Health Insurance Organization; and upgrade the Health Insurance Sub-Council into a full-fledged council. The grant will assist in implementing the reforms contained in the law once adopted.
ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through
inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2012, ADB assistance totaled $21.6 billion, including cofinancing of $8.3 billion.
