The healthcare system is governed principally by the Fundamental Law on Healthcare Services No. 3,359 and dated 15 May 1987, which furnishes the Ministry of Health (MoH) with the authority to issue healthcare-related regulations and establish a healthcare system enabling each and every person living in Turkey to have equal and equitable access to the healthcare system. The regulatory authority is the MoH and its subsidiaries.

The MoH is responsible for establishing hospitals and public health institutions to provide healthcare services to the public. In addition to public hospitals and healthcare institutions, universities with medical faculties may also establish hospitals under the authority granted to universities by the Higher Education Law No. 2,547 and dated 4 November 1981 , and this system is also quite common in Turkey. Private hospitals and healthcare institutions are also common in places where the purchasing power of the population is high.