Starting January 1, 2020, income tax amount was reduced and will reach soon 20%. Considering new income tax rates and increased minimum wage amount, citizens of the country will be able to receive extra AMD 1.5 billion (~EUR 2.84 million) monthly, ArmInfo reports.

This financial assistance will allow the population to spend more on health care, although there is no clear position of the government regarding the introduction of general health insurance, according to Nikol PASHINYAN, Prime Minister of Armenia. However, the main task is to ensure proper health of the citizens, he noted.

The Ministry of Health of Armenia proposed to charge additional 4-6% from employees' salaries for health insurance starting 2022, to ensure the availability of high-quality and timely medical services for all citizens, regardless of gender, age, place of residence and social status. "Due to financial difficulties, about 20.1% of the population does not visit primary care doctors. Lack of financial resources hinders the development of the system and the improvement of the quality of medical services, leading to impoverishment of families because of catastrophic health care costs", the Ministry explained.

According to the Ministry, this tax will increase the turnover of medical facilities by 2.5 times. Preliminary estimations show that the introduction of general health insurance will require AMD 229.1 billion (~EUR 433.55 million).

*AMD 1 = EUR 528.43 (as of 28.01.2020)