«We are working to demonstrate to the government that change is essential...» - Devi Khechinashvili, president of the Association of Insurance Companies, states commenting on the challenges in the general and private insurance.
It is important to note that since 2017, the Ministry of Health has eliminated the so-called built-in additional insurance packages. Consequently, citizens opting for private insurance are excluded from the universal health insurance program.
Devi Khechinashvili emphasizes that this approach is detrimental to both patients and the state. He points out that it is essential to eliminate this restriction and revert to the «construction» system.
«The only sector with significant demand is health insurance. Currently, 750,000 individuals are insured, yet under the existing regulations in Georgia, a person who works and earns a substantial income tends to opt for private insurance, thereby forfeiting the opportunity for universal coverage. This is a very misguided approach, and we are working to demonstrate to the government that change is necessary, as this strategy is unfavorable for both patients and the state, which ultimately bears excessive financial burdens.»
« Standardization is required, but how exactly this will happen is unclear - there are no real contours of this issue now. We have a simple task - together with the government and health service - to remove the restriction of 2017, which leads to the loss of universal coverage when buying private insurance, and make construction possible. After that, there should be a serious discussion about whether it would be right to switch to some kind of compulsory insurance system», - says Devi Khechinashvili.
According to data from the State Insurance Supervision Service of Georgia, in the first six months of 2025, insurance premiums collected from direct (private) insurance totaled GEL 802 million. The report indicates that during this same period, profits stood at GEL 162 million, a net profit at GEL 56 million.
Health insurance represents the largest portion of premiums collected during the reporting period. Specifically, health insurance premiums experienced an annual growth of 9.7%, reaching GEL 374.6 million (compared to GEL 341.44 million in the first half of 2024).
The statistics also reveal that 21% of Georgia's population uses private health insurance. In the first six months of 2025, a total of 765,812 health insurance policies were issued.
