There are two types of health care systems that run congruently in Uruguay – public and private.
The Ministry of Public Health runs the public health care system in Uruguay through the State Health Services Administration (ASSE) and other related agencies (such as the Armed Forces, Police, etc).
The ASSE serves 33.7% of Uruguay’s population and the related agencies serve 7.2% of Uruguay’s population.
The private health care system is made up of mainly private, non-profit health care institutions, also known as Mutualistas or Cooperativas.
There are about 48 of these Mutualistas/ Cooperativas providing health care in Uruguay to nearly half (46.6%) of the population through private health insurance plans.
Public health insurance is provided for all Uruguay citizens and residents that also pay into BPS (similar to Social Security in the United States).
You may also choose to have these funds directed to select Mutualistas rather than receiving health insurance coverage at a public hospital.
Only 11.7% of people in Uruguay do not have formal health insurance coverage. This is compared with approximately 18% of the United States population according to the U.S. Census Bureau (in 2007).