DUBAI With the deadline for the final roll-out of mandatory insurance ticking away in Dubai, top officials of the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) have urged the public to put their medical insurance policies in place or run the risk of being penalised for violating the law.
In the current third and last phase, the mandatory insurance scheme, which links visa applications to medical insurance, requires companies with less than 100 employees and individuals, including spouses, dependent parents and children, and domestic workers to get covered by June 30. From July 1, anyone applying for a new visa or visa renewal must be able to demonstrate that they are covered by medical insurance by presenting a medical certificate from the insurance company.
Status of uninsured
Responding to a query about the status of uninsured applicants whose visas are due for renewal before June 30, Dr Haidar Al Yousuf, director, DHA, said: “It would not absolve them of their legal responsibility.” He was speaking to XPRESS on the sidelines of the Arab Health expo on January 25.
While uninsured individuals whose visas are due for renewal before June 30 may get their permits, the applicants would stand the risk of paying fines when their visas come up for renewal the next time round if they remain uninsured from July 1. The extent of these fines is being finalised.
Asked about the high premiums being quoted by insurance companies for dependent elderly parents, Dr Haidar said: “This is a high risk population. So far, only those requiring immediate care have been going for cover, so the pool has been smaller. But as we move towards mid-2016, the pool will become larger and prices will drop. We are working on regulating premiums and rationalising products.”
Addressing the 11th annual Healthcare Insurance Forum in Dubai on January 26, Robin Ali, consultant at DHA’s Health Funding Department, said: “We have now got to a point where we have a system that links with the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs that issues visas. No one will be able to get visas from their employers or individual sponsors unless they have health insurance in place.”
He said the system linking visa applications to medical insurance, which includes a centralised member register of the insured, will come into effect on March 31 to eventually pave the way for the automatic denial of visas if an applicant’s name doesn’t figure in the register.
He said the DHA is currently focusing on compliance by employers who were to provide mandatory insurance to their employees under Phase 1 (companies with over 1,000 employees) and Phase 2 (companies with 100-999 employees).
YOUSPEAK: Do you have medical insurance? If not, why?
