Saudi Gazette report DAMMAM — The Ministry of Health has issued directives to all private sector companies to provide health insurance not only to their employees but also to their dependent family members, according to an informed source. Insurance companies have been provided with a draft copy of the ministry's decision that will be implemented within a few months, the source said. They are working on an insurance plan that will cover workers and their family members in the same policy, the source added. Dr. Abdullah Al-Maghlouth, a health insurance analyst, said this decision would reduce pressure on public hospitals. There are a large number of non-Saudi family members, approximately four million, who need health insurance. Most of them hail from Egypt, Pakistan, Jordan and Palestine, he said. “No doubt that this decision will increase pressure on small businesses and will compel them to raise the prices of their products or merge with larger businesses so that they can reduce the impact of the decision on their budgets.” A marketing manager of an insurance company expects the insurance market to witness increasing demand for policies covering family members over the next few years. Dr. Abdullah Al-Shareef, secretary of the Council of Cooperative Health Insurance, said earlier that insurance plans for family members would include higher coverage for diseases. He added that the maximum coverage limit of an insurance policy would be raised to SR250,000. There are 28 insurance companies in the Kingdom providing services to 8 million foreign workers in the private sector. Three of them exclusively provide health insurance products.
