Улаанбаатар
Citizens to get involved in medical checkups from May 1
Society
Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. During today's Cabinet meeting, Minister of Health S.Enkhbold was obliged with the task to involve the entire population in preventive and early-detection checkups.
Mongolia's long-term development policy document – Vision 2050, states that every citizen should be involved in preventive medical checkups every two years. The Government's Action Plan for 2020-2024 also calls for improving the health education of every citizen and boosting access to regular medical checkups that are in line with international standards.
The average life expectancy of Mongolia is 75.8 for women and 60.6 for men. In other words, the difference in life expectancy between men and women is 9.7 years.
The Government Action Plan for 2020-2024 provides for reducing this gap to five years. According to the Minister of Health S.Enkhbold, nationwide preventive checkups and early detection campaign is planned to be launched on May 1 this year. "I assume that it is a timely decision which can greatly contribute to the post-COVID-19 rehabilitation treatment”, added the Minister.
Respiratory and urogenital diseases and gastrointestinal disorders are the most common diseases in Mongolia. Whereas, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, cancer, and traumatic injuries are the leading causes of death.
Therefore, the checkups will be more focused on the detailed diagnosis of these diseases. Mongolia has a capacity to perform 17 out of 24-25 types of diagnostic tests performed internationally. “The medical checkups will involve people of all age groups, from infants to the elderly.”
The Government of Mongolia launched works to involve the population in preventive and early-detection checkups in 2018. However, the participation of the people was only at 10 percent. Therefore, this year, MNT 60.8 billion will be allocated from the state budget to the Health Insurance Fund to carry out this program.
The Minister noted that the checkups will not only significant in creating the country’s unified health data, but also prevent people from financial burdens related to health.
