President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu says the government has decided that those citizens earning more than MVR 60,000 as a monthly salary would not receive the full coverage of the local health insurance scheme, Aasandha.
Speaking at a Press Conference held today, the President said that the government was taking essential steps to reduce its spending, including downsizing. He also said that the government intends to prioritize providing essential services to those most in need of the service.
The President explained that the current Aasandha system provides full coverage without any discrimination from the richest to the poorest. However, he said that financial and technical experts, as well as the government, believe that this is not the most sustainable and fair approach
He announced that with this change, from next month, Aasandha will be provided on a co-pay or pre-pay basis to those in the income bracket above MVR 60,000 per month.
The President said that wealthy people who pay income tax should not get all services free, like the general public.
President Dr. Muizzu added that the reform will save a large amount of expenditure from the budget this year.
He said the government is expected to save about MVR 287 million next year, which will be spent on providing other vital services to the people.
