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Saudi Arabia's health insurance sector grows 62% in two years

The volume of Saudi health insurance sector soared 62 per cent over the past two years, reaching to over to 2.7 billion Saudi riyals at present.

  • By Mariam Al Hakeem, Correspondent
  • Published: 00:16 May 19, 2008
  • Gulf News

Riyadh: The volume of Saudi health insurance sector soared 62 per cent over the past two years, reaching to over to 2.7 billion Saudi riyals at present.

Health insurance, which makes up 32 per cent of the burgeoning Saudi insurance market, tops other insurance sectors in terms of annual growth, according to Raid Al Tamimi, deputy CEO of Cooperative Health Insurance Company (Taawuniya).

Al Tamimi said cooperative health insurance, a form of health insurance, has been made mandatory in the kingdom. "The system aims at making healthcare available for expatriates and their families under an agreement signed between insurance companies and the concerned companies and firms."

The system is currently expanding to cover Saudi citizens.

Basem Auda, director general of the Arabian Shield Cooperative Insurance Company, said that the volume of Saudi insurance market, which reached seven billion riyals during the year 2007, is expected to cross eight billion riyals this year.

At present, nearly three million Saudis and foreigners are beneficiaries of the health insurance system.

"This is a meagre figure compared with the growing population of both citizens and expatriates," Auda said. Nine licensed insurance companies in operation in Saudi Arabia. Eleven are awaiting final authorisation.

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