The resolution was adopted with a view to further stimulating development of the private health sector, providing comprehensive government support, improving conditions for training, retraining and upgrading the skills of the staff, attraction of foreign investments in the sphere of private medicine.

In accordance with the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. PP-2863 of 1 April 2017 "On measures for the further development of the private health sector", extensive work was carried out to further develop the private health sector, creating favorable conditions for private medical organizations, licensing their activities, stimulating the increase in the volume and types of health services provided in the private health sector.

The document said that number of medical services, provided by private sector, rose from 50 to 126. Private medical organizations, except dental and cosmetic, are exempt from all types of taxes and mandatory deductions, as well as from customs fees for imported new medical equipment, component parts, spare parts and consumables for equipment up to 1 January 2022.

It is important to note that newly create microfirms and small enterprises, specializing in providing medical services in rural areas, are exempted from a single tax payment for 10 years from the state registration date. This should accelerate the development of private medicine in rural and remote areas.

As a result, the number of private medical organizations increased by 440, the total number of which was 4,000. More than a thousand new jobs have been created.

At the same time, the issues of providing financial support, the possibility of transferring certain functions of state medical organizations to the private health sector, the development of public-private partnership in the healthcare sphere, the upgrading of the skills of medical personnel in the republic and abroad, the integration of the private healthcare sector into a single information and communication system , as well as the introduction of an accreditation system for medical organizations should be addressed.

To address the above issues, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan adopted a resolution "On creating additional conditions for the further development of private medical organizations."

The decree approves the targeted list of projects to establish and expand the activities of private medical organizations in 2018-2019, indicating the sources and amounts of funding.

In view of importance of the issues being implemented, the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, the khokimiyats of the regions and the city of Tashkent together with the Ministry of Health and the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan to assist privatized enterprises and develop competition are responsible for providing comprehensive support and ensuring the quality implementation of projects approved by this resolution through effective use allocated financial resources and provision of project initiators the prescribed manner of land for construction and unused state property on a "zero" redemption value.

However, to create and expand the activities of private medical organizations, commercial banks of the Republic of Uzbekistan are recommended to provide loans.

The resolution drew attention to the need for financial support for private medical organizations, which is reflected in creation of the Fund for the Development of Non-Governmental Medical Institutions under the joint-stock commercial bank “Asaka” in the amount of US$14 million. Each region will receive US$1 million to financing the implementation of projects.

It should be noted that the funds of the Fund for the Development of Non-Governmental Medical Institutions will be directed at attracting highly qualified foreign specialists, sending doctors from private medical organizations to upgrade their skills to foreign countries and equipping non-governmental medical organizations with modern medical equipment.

In the resolution, great attention is paid to the issues of raising the level of skills and retraining of medical personnel. The Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan was instructed, within two months, to approve the procedure for sending to retraining and raising the level of professional skill of private medical organizations abroad at the expense of the Fund for Development of Non-Governmental Medical Institutions under Asaka Bank.

The resolution also provides for the rational use of the human and material and technical potential of the leading private medical organizations. In this context, the Ministry of Health together with the Ministry of Higher and Secondary Special Education of the Republic of Uzbekistan is tasked with developing and approving the procedure for using private medical institutions for students of medical professional colleges and higher educational institutions, practicing physicians who upgrade their qualifications as training bases, implementation since the 2018/2019 school year.

The resolution pays attention to development of public-private partnership, including in providing additional services such as food, laundry and others.

In addition, certain types of medical specializations (laboratory services, hemodialysis units, sterilization departments, etc.) will be transferred to private medical organizations on the basis of the agreement, the list of which is determined by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

It is important to emphasize that to improve the availability of doctors in rural and remote areas, the resolution said that retired doctors can receive both their pensions and salaries.

The President entrusted to develop a concept of phased accreditation of medical organizations and development of medical tourism in Uzbekistan, and sending Uzbek citizens to foreign countries to obtain medical services.

Uzbek leader also entrusted to connect private medical organizations to integrated information system “Health”.