JEDDAH: Jeddah Health Affairs is investigating a private hospital after a Saudi citizen lodged a complaint saying he was exploited and cheated out of SR15,000 when his son was admitted after sustaining injuries during a school trip. Hussein Al-Rifa'i, who said he has learned that the hospital has cheated a number of patients, told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that he was forced to pay for his son's treatment and the facility later told him that his insurance company would not cover the costs. “My son, Khalid,10, went on a school trip to one of Jeddah's parks and he fell while playing with his schoolmates and suffered a fracture in the upper jawbone and three of his teeth penetrated the jaw,” Al-Rifa'i said. “The private hospital was close to the park so the teachers took him there.” The boy required immediate treatment and officials demanded SR15,000, he said. “Khalid was taken to the Emergency Section directly and the staff said he needed urgent medical attention and surgery to repair the jaw and place the three teeth in their normal position,” he said. “They demanded that I pay SR15,000 in advance to conduct the surgery. I presented my son's medical insurance card, but they told me later that the company refused to bear the treatment costs so I was forced to pay the treatment charges.” Al-Rifa'i said he called the insurance company to learn why it would not pay for his son's care – and learned that the insurer would cover all costs after it received a report on the case. Despite the company's pledge, the hospital has refused to refund the SR15,000 or provide the documents, Al-Rifa'i said. “The hospital told me again that the insurance company would not cover the costs,” he said. “I returned the next day and received the same replies. The hospital is keeping the money and adamantly refusing to hand me a report on my son's case.” Al-Rifa'i said he's learned that this has happened to a number of people. “After asking here and there and seeing a number of the hospital's officials, I discovered that a number of patients have experienced these situations and they were victims of exploitation and cheating by the hospital,” he said. “I learned that the doctors are given big commissions for urgent cases when people pay in cash and are told their cases are not covered by their insurance.” An official source in Jeddah Health Affairs confirmed to Okaz/Saudi Gazette that there is a directive from the Ministry of Health and an undertaking has been signed by all hospitals and health centers to affirm that they would receive all cases that require urgent treatment. The official denounced the private hospital's action and said emergency cases are covered by insurance. “Jeddah Health Affairs forces insuring companies to bear treatment costs for critical cases,” he said. “If the case is not covered by insurance, the Ministry of Health will bear the cost. The patient has only to present a letter about the incident and the relevant reports to the Directorate of Health Affairs, which will transfer it to the Medical Licenses Administration to pay the bills, if the person arrived at the hospital via the Red Crescent.”
