Key Features
- Health Financing Regulation: Standardize and regulate health insurance schemes, subsidies, and donor-funded projects.
- Accreditation & Compliance: Set financial standards for hospitals, insurers, and providers to ensure accountability.
- Pricing & Tariff Oversight: Regulate the pricing of medical services, health packages, and insurance premiums.
- Fund Pooling & Equity: Ensure fair distribution of resources across provinces, districts, and vulnerable groups.
- Monitoring & Auditing: Track health-related funds from federal to facility level through digital dashboards.
- Integration with NCRA, NDH & PNBH: Enable real-time financial traceability linked to health identities and accounts.
Phased Plan
- Phase 1 - Research & Stakeholder Engagement: Consultations with MoF, SBP, MoNHSR&C, SECP, donors, and insurance providers.
- Phase 2 - Policy & Legislation: Drafting the PHFRA Act, defining scope, governance model, and regulatory powers.
- Phase 3 -Institutional Setup: Establishing PHFRA headquarters, digital monitoring systems, and technical units.
- Phase 4 -Pilot Regulatory Framework: Testing health financing models in partnership with provinces and insurers.
- Phase 5 - Nationwide Enforcement: Rolling out standardized financing regulations and compliance audits.
- Phase 6 -Continuous Oversight & Reforms: Updating financing rules in line with national priorities and global best practices.
Estimated Budget
The PHFRA will require $50M–$75M USD over five years for institutional establishment, digital regulatory systems, compliance mechanisms, and national rollout. Funding will be mobilized from:
- Government of Pakistan (legislation & regulatory setup)
- International Development partners
- Technical support agencies for capacity building and systems design.
- The PHFRA will require $50M–$75M USD over five years for institutional establishment, digital regulatory systems, compliance mechanisms, and national rollout. Funding will be mobilized from:
- Government of Pakistan (legislation & regulatory setup)
- International Development partners
- Technical support agencies for capacity building and systems design.
Total Budget: 75,000,000 USD
The Pakistan Health Financing Regulatory Authority (PHFRA) is envisioned as an independent federal authority to regulate, oversee, and strengthen the financing of healthcare in Pakistan. It will serve as the watchdog and regulator for all health-related financial flows—including government budgets, insurance schemes, donor contributions, and private-sector financing—ensuring that funds are transparent, equitable, and efficiently utilized.
PHFRA will act as the regulatory backbone of the health financing ecosystem, working in close coordination with the Pakistan National Bank of Health (PNBH), the National Child Registration Authority (NCRA), and the National Database of Health (NDH).
Nigehban Social and Economic Development Foundation serves as the advisor and presenter of this concept, helping to define its policy scope, institutional framework, and integration strategy.