I’ve written about healthcare in Cyprus several times already. But now, everyone here is talking about a long-discussed government initiative that’s finally arriving at our doorstep. Its name is GHS (General Health System), or GESY (pronounced “yesi”).

And since I’m naturally inclined to dig into things, I decided to figure out what exactly this is and how it might affect me personally. I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I’ll explain what I know and understand..

The Idea

Overall, the concept behind it is good. The thing is, healthcare in Cyprus can be divided into two groups: public and private. Public healthcare is cheap, but there are few doctors, which leads to long waiting lists—sometimes months ahead. Private healthcare costs around 40-50 euros per visit, and there are almost no queues (except for very successful doctors who are in high demand, but even then, it’s usually just a matter of a few days at worst).

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