Health insurance law to provide high-quality services in Bahrain

MANAMA: The new health insurance law was in the spotlight at a key meeting yesterday.

Supreme Council for Health (SCH) President Lieutenant-General Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Khalifa held a webinar with the editors-in-chief of local newspapers.

He said the new law paves the way for the national social insurance scheme which will cover the needs of citizens and residents.

“The programme aims to provide high-quality health services while optimising the use of resources to obtain the best results. It also aims to ensure the rights of the patient,” he said.

Under the scheme, the patient has the right to choose a service provider, and the private sector gets the opportunity to provide basic and complementary services as a partner with the public sector.

The system will encourage hospitals to obtain national and international accreditations and compete with each other for the quality of services provided.

He stressed the importance of the national health plan, which will revolutionise the health sector by 2025 and ensure its sustainability and funding.

He also stressed the importance of the self-management scheme for the primary healthcare system.

He said a thorugh study had been conducted to assess the current standard of primary healthcare, adding that a wide-ranging strategy was endorsed by the Cabinet.

The strategy focuses on working hours, testing methodologies at the central laboratory, setting up of centres for emergency cases, hotline, recruitment and incentives.

A strategy is also underway for Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC).

The self-management strategy for government hospitals was approved by the Cabinet and the Supreme Council of Health and the Board of Trustees of Primary Health Care.

The CEO of government hospitals was also appointed by the end of 2020 to implement self-management and institutional separation from the Health Ministry.

Regarding the National Insurance Scheme, he said it would ensure that all expatriates living in the Kingdom receive healthcare services.

“An integrated system for compulsory insurance for foreign residents has been completed, and the roles of the concerned authorities have been defined”, he said.

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