Health insurance fund appoints leadership

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia has selected the members of the Board of Trustees of the Universal Health Insurance Fund and appointed its chief executive following a competitive selection process chaired by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Ruben Melkonyan, Chief Financial Officer of Bereke Bank Kazakhstan, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Universal Health Insurance Fund.

On June 23 and 24, competitive selection committee meetings for the Board of Trustees and the Fund's Chief Executive Officer were held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. During the meetings, the members of the Board of Trustees of the Universal Health Insurance Fund and the Fund's Chief Executive Officer were selected.

The voting resulted in the election of the following Board of Trustees members: Shant Shekherdimian, Head of Pediatric Surgery at UCLA Hospital; Varduhi Petrosyan, Dean of the College of Health Sciences at the American University of Armenia; Artashes Tonoyan, Director of the Yerevan branch of the World Trade Center; Tumas Palu, Adviser at the World Health Organization's Ukraine Office; and Khodam Rostomian, Regional Executive at Kaiser Permanente.

Health Minister Anahit Avanesyan stated that the selection of the Board members and the Chief Executive Officer took place in two stages. During the first stage, announcements were published within the established deadlines, submitted applications were reviewed, and candidates meeting the requirements for the positions were shortlisted.

During the interviews, candidates presented their vision for developing the sector and improving management efficiency, outlined their professional experience, and answered questions from the selection committee. Following the interviews, voting was held, the results were summarized, and a decision was made to declare the winners. Prime Minister Pashinyan subsequently announced the competition results.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said: "The universal health insurance system is an extremely important and transformative reform for the Republic of Armenia, and another stage of that reform is now taking place."

According to the Prime Minister, the government is delegating the management of the Fund to the newly elected Board members and Chief Executive Officer while continuing to play a significant role in shaping healthcare policies.

Pashinyan noted that the Board members and the Chief Executive Officer were selected with the aim of creating a balanced system involving the government, the Ministry of Health, beneficiaries, the medical community, the Board of Trustees, and the Chief Executive Officer, ensuring the Fund's sustainable development and the overall success of the universal health insurance system.

In conclusion, the Prime Minister thanked everyone involved in the process, as well as Samvel Kharazyan, who had been serving as Acting Chief Executive Officer, for his work and expressed confidence that he would continue contributing to the process in one capacity or another.

The universal health insurance system came into effect on January 1, 2026. During the initial phase, it covered citizens earning 200,000 drams or more per month. The first stage also included all individuals under the age of 18 and everyone aged 65 and above, regardless of income. The state will fully finance coverage for these groups throughout 2026.

The mandatory insurance package costs 129,600 drams per year and includes preventive and early detection programs, screening services, inpatient treatment, pharmaceutical coverage, and emergency medical services. For individuals earning between 200,000 and 500,000 drams per month, the government covers most of the cost, leaving them to pay only 300 drams per month, as a significant share of contributions previously allocated to the Zinapah Foundation has been redirected to the insurance system.