Purpose – The COVID-19 pandemic hit all countries and impacted lives, healthcare systems, and economies. The pandemic has changed the behaviors of suppliers and demanders across all markets and the health insurance is no different. The purpose of the paper is to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on health insurance, both social and private, through the channels of demographics and altered healthcare service utilization.
Design/methodology/approach – In this paper, the author draws on the literature to present how the COVID-19 has affected population demographics and healthcare service availability and utilization and the possible effects of such changes on health insurance. The author further reflects on the Egyptian case to predict the possible implications of the pandemic on the demographics and healthcare systems and consequently on health insurance in Egypt by looking at the latest surveys and official data that capture the effects of the pandemic in light of Egypt's initial population and healthcare system characteristics.
Findings – The paper shows that the COVID-19 affects the health insurance market through its effect on demographic characteristics and healthcare service utilization resulting from the population's altered medical profile. However, due to the complex nature of COVID-19 effects on these factors, the final impact on the health insurance remains inconclusive.