Iran Expands Family Medicine Program to 64 Networks With 13.6 Million Under Coverage

Iran's Ministry of Health is expanding its family medicine program across 64 medical networks. According to ministry representative Alireza Raisi, citing IRNA, the program currently covers 13.6 million people, including 7.7 million urban residents and the remainder in rural areas. An initial phase is providing diagnostics for diabetes, hypertension, and prediabetes to approximately 3.5 million people. The operational structure consists of 2,528 physicians working in pilot centers across urban and rural districts, with approximately 1,610 additional specialists expected to join for basic care. While specialist assignments for rural residents are complete, the distribution of physicians for urban areas is in its final stages. To support the rollout, the ministry is developing a digital infrastructure focused on integrating service levels, linking with insurance systems, automating appointments, managing patient referrals, and creating administrative dashboards.