Saudi Arabia: Authorities to stamp out fake medical insurance

Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Jun 2015

The Council of Cooperative Health Insurance (CCHI) plans to root out 2.5 million fake medical insurance policies by July, especially when reviewing the renewal of residence permits, said Secretary General Mohammed Bin Salman Al Hussein.

Some employers need to hire Saudis for Nitaqat, a government programme aimed at Saudisation of the workforce. The Saudis who are hired in these cases are employees in name only: they stay home and do not go to work. To reduce staff costs, employers create fake medical insurance policies for such employees.

“We started in coordination with the Ministry of Interior to develop a plan to close all offices that sell fake medical insurance policies to expatriates who want to renew their residence permits,” Mr Al Hussein told Arab News.

The number of people who are covered by medical insurance increased from 4.9 million to 5.5 million during last four months, he added. All Saudis are expected to be covered under CCHI within two years.

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