The Turkish Insurance Association (TSB) reported that, by the end of May 2026, Turkey’s health insurance market had grown to 9.6 million active policies covering 8.4 million individual policyholders. The association stressed that health insurance should not be viewed solely as a tool for paying medical bills, but also as a broader financial protection mechanism that helps individuals and families manage unexpected healthcare costs.
Drawing on data compiled from the Insurance Information and Supervision Centre (SBM) and labour force statistics published by Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) for 2025, the assessment found that the number of people benefiting from health insurance corresponds to nearly 26 per cent of total employment and around 24 per cent of the overall labour force in Turkey.
Regional concentration remains strongest in major economic centres
The distribution of health insurance across the country shows a clear concentration in large metropolitan areas and regions with strong industrial and service-sector activity. While nationwide coverage represents about 26 per cent of the workforce, Istanbul stands far above the national average at 54 per cent. Other regions with comparatively high levels of coverage include Kocaeli-Sakarya-Düzce-Bolu-Yalova at 32 per cent, İzmir at 31 per cent, Bursa-Eskişehir-Bilecik at 30 per cent, and Ankara at 29 per cent.
In contrast, several regions remain well below the national average. Health insurance coverage is recorded at 17 per cent in Antalya-Isparta-Burdur, 14 per cent in Adana-Mersin, 13 per cent in the Trabzon-Ordu-Giresun-Rize-Artvin-Gümüşhane area, 12 per cent in Samsun-Tokat-Çorum-Amasya, and 11 per cent in Kayseri-Sivas-Yozgat. In regions such as Konya-Karaman, Şanlıurfa-Diyarbakır, Van-Muş-Bitlis-Hakkari, and Ağrı-Kars-Iğdır-Ardahan, the share remains limited to roughly 6 to 8 per cent.
Policy density and gender patterns reveal further contrasts
When measured by active policy density, Turkey has approximately 14 active health insurance policies for every 100 people aged 15 and over. In Istanbul, however, this figure rises sharply to 33 policies per 100 people, underlining the city’s significantly stronger penetration of private health coverage.
The analysis also points to a notable difference between female and male employees. Among women in employment, individual health insurance coverage reaches approximately 33 per cent, compared with about 20 per cent for men. This indicates that health insurance usage among employed women is around 1.6 times higher than among employed men.
According to the TSB, these figures show that health insurance now plays a wider role than simply enabling access to treatment. It serves as a financial buffer against sudden health-related expenses and supports household resilience in periods of medical uncertainty.
