Primary health care is provided to the rural residents by 31,000 health care providers (called Behvarz) nationwide, Mohammadreza Rahbar, an official with the director of the health network department at the Ministry of Health has said.

Primary health care includes preventive care, health promotion, screening, and basic medical services for the predefined conditions, he noted.

Currently, there are 31,148 health care providers active in the country, but to reach ideal conditions, we need 43,128 health workers, he added.

Of course, 98 percent of the country’s rural population is covered by the primary health care (PHC) system, and the remaining villages are those with a very small population and high dispersion, he explained.