Dubai gets new health care plan
From January 10, 2009, all residents of Dubai will compulsorily have to be part of a Health Funding System which will entitle them to affordable basic healthcare within the emirate.
In a major announcement made by the Dubai Health Authority yesterday, Director-General of DHA Qadhi Saeed Al Murooshid said the new system will be compulsory for everyone.
As per the new system, employers will contribute the majority of the funding provided through a flat rate to the Health Benefits Contribution (HBC) pool, paid on behalf of their employees. Outpatient Care Practices (OCP) will be at the core of the system and will manage patient care while only authorised insurance companies will distribute health insurance schemes incorporating the new funding system.
Starting January, 2009, everyone residing in the emirate or holding a Dubai residence visa will be required to register himself/herself with public or private outpatient (OP) clinics of their choice (subject to availability). They will then be issued a health card which will give them access to essential healthcare within Dubai only.
Those requiring healthcare facilities in any other emirate, once the system is in place, will have to bear the cost until the Federal Insurance System is in place. Currently, the draft Federal UAE health insurance proposal is under consideration.
The registration process will be carried out by employers after paying an expected contribution of between Dh500 and Dh800 per person towards the HBC pool. This figure will be reviewed annually.
In cases where there is no direct employer, the individual resident of Dubai will be responsible for the payment to HBC for dependants and those they sponsor.
The UAE nationals will continue to receive existing levels of cover and service which means the government will bear all their healthcare expenses./ The entire registration process for Dubai has to be completed within a year. However, the current insurance schemes being held by companies will continue until as and when all Dubai employees/residents are registered.
The Dubai government, during the pilot phase, will provide financial support. It will also pay the contribution to the HBC for its own employees and set aside additional funds in respect of long-term health planning and significant risks.
Basic healthcare services that everyone will be entitled to will include: primary outpatient care, prescription drugs, long-term community care, childhood immunisation, children's dental care, mental health, ambulatory specialist care, non-emergency inpatient care and acute and emergency care.
However, individuals using either own resources or through their employer will be able to buy private "top-up" health insurance. This will not exempt anyone from the obligation to contribute in full to the basic system which will be compulsory.
"The DHADHA transition programme will be introduced over the next four years, completing in 2012, with the DHADHA health funding process fully being implemented by 2015," according to the director general.
The DHADHA, over the past 12 months, has extensively consulted and engaged 700 public and private medical establishments, over 50 insurance companies, liaised with over six Dubai's largest hospitals and visited 10 countries.
Al Murooshid said, "Dubai's population has grown to nearly 1.5 million and continues to expand. Alongside this growth, the rapidly rising cost of healthcare facilities, services and medicines are all driving the demand for more healthcare expenditure."
At present, the DHADHA transition team is working closely with The Executive Council (TEC) on all future financing arrangements. Full details of the new funding system are available on the DHADHA web site (www.dha.gov.ae/healthfunding)
The new Dubai Health Funding system is similar to the Health Insurance Law that Abu Dhabi introduced in 2006. However, unlike the Abu Dhabi system that ensures that all employers and sponsors are responsible for health insurance coverage at all times for their employees and their families, the Dubai system is more employer-friendly. The employer has a choice of offering cover to the employee only.
However, the Dubai funding system has been 'custom-designed' after studying success of similar systems in Australia, New Zealand, Australia, the USA, the Netherlands, Singapore and the UK.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), the UAE is ranked 44th in the world in terms of healthcare. While this is comparable to other AGCC countries, the DHADHA aims at developing the system at par with the world's best.
Bahrain has a national public health system that offers free or low-cost healthcare services and treatments to all residents. Saudi Arabia has a national healthcare system in which the government provides healthcare services through a number of government agencies. The quality of healthcare in Kuwait and Oman is considered high and equal to that in western Europe and the USA, except for highly specialised treatment.
/Khaleej Times/
In a major announcement made by the Dubai Health Authority yesterday, Director-General of DHA Qadhi Saeed Al Murooshid said the new system will be compulsory for everyone.
As per the new system, employers will contribute the majority of the funding provided through a flat rate to the Health Benefits Contribution (HBC) pool, paid on behalf of their employees. Outpatient Care Practices (OCP) will be at the core of the system and will manage patient care while only authorised insurance companies will distribute health insurance schemes incorporating the new funding system.
Starting January, 2009, everyone residing in the emirate or holding a Dubai residence visa will be required to register himself/herself with public or private outpatient (OP) clinics of their choice (subject to availability). They will then be issued a health card which will give them access to essential healthcare within Dubai only.
Those requiring healthcare facilities in any other emirate, once the system is in place, will have to bear the cost until the Federal Insurance System is in place. Currently, the draft Federal UAE health insurance proposal is under consideration.
The registration process will be carried out by employers after paying an expected contribution of between Dh500 and Dh800 per person towards the HBC pool. This figure will be reviewed annually.
In cases where there is no direct employer, the individual resident of Dubai will be responsible for the payment to HBC for dependants and those they sponsor.
The UAE nationals will continue to receive existing levels of cover and service which means the government will bear all their healthcare expenses./ The entire registration process for Dubai has to be completed within a year. However, the current insurance schemes being held by companies will continue until as and when all Dubai employees/residents are registered.
The Dubai government, during the pilot phase, will provide financial support. It will also pay the contribution to the HBC for its own employees and set aside additional funds in respect of long-term health planning and significant risks.
Basic healthcare services that everyone will be entitled to will include: primary outpatient care, prescription drugs, long-term community care, childhood immunisation, children's dental care, mental health, ambulatory specialist care, non-emergency inpatient care and acute and emergency care.
However, individuals using either own resources or through their employer will be able to buy private "top-up" health insurance. This will not exempt anyone from the obligation to contribute in full to the basic system which will be compulsory.
"The DHADHA transition programme will be introduced over the next four years, completing in 2012, with the DHADHA health funding process fully being implemented by 2015," according to the director general.
The DHADHA, over the past 12 months, has extensively consulted and engaged 700 public and private medical establishments, over 50 insurance companies, liaised with over six Dubai's largest hospitals and visited 10 countries.
Al Murooshid said, "Dubai's population has grown to nearly 1.5 million and continues to expand. Alongside this growth, the rapidly rising cost of healthcare facilities, services and medicines are all driving the demand for more healthcare expenditure."
At present, the DHADHA transition team is working closely with The Executive Council (TEC) on all future financing arrangements. Full details of the new funding system are available on the DHADHA web site (www.dha.gov.ae/healthfunding)
The new Dubai Health Funding system is similar to the Health Insurance Law that Abu Dhabi introduced in 2006. However, unlike the Abu Dhabi system that ensures that all employers and sponsors are responsible for health insurance coverage at all times for their employees and their families, the Dubai system is more employer-friendly. The employer has a choice of offering cover to the employee only.
However, the Dubai funding system has been 'custom-designed' after studying success of similar systems in Australia, New Zealand, Australia, the USA, the Netherlands, Singapore and the UK.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), the UAE is ranked 44th in the world in terms of healthcare. While this is comparable to other AGCC countries, the DHADHA aims at developing the system at par with the world's best.
Bahrain has a national public health system that offers free or low-cost healthcare services and treatments to all residents. Saudi Arabia has a national healthcare system in which the government provides healthcare services through a number of government agencies. The quality of healthcare in Kuwait and Oman is considered high and equal to that in western Europe and the USA, except for highly specialised treatment.
/Khaleej Times/
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