Mena News - Daman Steps Up Operations to Help Employers Meet New Abu Dhabi Health Law
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Sep 2006
Abu Dhabi-headquartered National Health Insurance Company – Daman has clinched government approval to provide health insurance for both the public and private sectors, in step with a new law making it mandatory for employers to take out health insurance coverage for their expatriate employees and their families.
Daman launched a marketing campaign in June to introduce various insurance products to employers rushing to comply with the legislation.
To ensure smooth implementation of the new health scheme, the insurer has set up:
• A customer service call centre;
• A high-capacity membership card centre, which can produce more than 100,000 membership cards per month;
• Remote production offices in Al Ain, Madinat Zayed and Musafah to expedite production and offer convenience to clients;
• An in-house claims processing department of 70 staff with centralised claims receiving, coding and evaluation functions;
• 24/7 access for medical authorisations.
Daman currently employs nearly 200 persons and expects to have a staff strength of 300 by the end of the year. Ten per cent of the staff are locals.
In early June, the Abu Dhabi government enacted a by-law requiring government, semi-government and large organisations which have a workforce of more than 1,000 employees, to provide health insurance coverage for each employee, the employee’s spouse and up to three dependents under the age of 18 years by 1 July. The compulsory coverage affects 250 entities in Abu Dhabi. In January next year, the law will be extended to cover all expatriates.
Daman, established in September 2005, is the first specialised national health insurance company to be formed in the UAE. Munich Re is a strategic partner of the company.