RIYADH, Feb 24: Saudi Arabia plans to provide free health insurance coverage to its 12 million plus citizens.

In order to provide the insurance coverage, the Saudi government has announced plans setting up a national cooperative fund to finance the health insurance expenses, Khaled Al-Mirghalani, a spokesman for the Saudi health ministry told the press.

The proposed privatisation scheme is to cover all the 200 hospitals under the health ministry. Investments in the kingdom’s private and public health sectors are estimated at SR500 billion with an annual expenditure of some SR50 billion.

“The new health insurance scheme will cover all Saudi citizens, except those who are already given coverage by major companies,” Al-Mirghalani was quoted as saying by the local daily Arab News.

Saudis receiving insurance coverage, under the new plan, will be entitled to continue receiving free medical services at private and public hospitals, the spokesman said. The new system is likely to be implemented next year when all government hospitals will be privatised.

Currently, public hospitals operating in virtually all parts of the kingdom take care of the medical needs of the citizens free of charge. Barring emergency, expatriates, however, are not entertained at these government hospitals.

Under a new scheme expatriates will be provided compulsory health insurance coverage by their employers. The companies have to bear the responsibility of the expatriate workers. However, many companies, especially in the lower end of the market, fail to provide full coverage to some expatriates.

The cooperative health insurance scheme will be implemented for Saudis next year, covering all government employees.

The ministry’s executive bylaw, which was issued in 2003, allows it to sell and rent some of its hospitals to private investors or companies. However, the cabinet must approve any proposal regarding privatisation by the health ministry. Under the law the privatisation can be carried out either by selling a hospital or renting it to a private company or changing it into a corporation owned by the state and run on commercial basis,” the bylaw said.