Revealed: How much Dubai spent on healthcare

Dubai residents spent Dh10 billion on healthcare in 2012, according to official figures released today.

Around 74 per cent of the money was spent on curative care, 20 per cent on medicines and medical equipment and 6 per cent for preventive services.

In terms of the healthcare providers, 48 per cent of the services were provided by hospitals, 22 per cent by clinics and dispensaries, 12 per cent by pharmacies and diagnostic services and 15 per cent were services provided outside the emirate.

The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) announced the findings of the first health accounts report in presence of high-ranking officials from the government and private health sector in Dubai.

Altijani Hussin, Health Economics Consultant at the DHA, said: "Of the Dh10 billion spent on health, 32 per cent was funded by the government, 45 per cent by the private sector and 22 per cent by families and individuals. However, with the implementation of the mandatory health insurance, we expect these percentages will change, as employee share in the contribution of health funding will increase."

Essa Al Maidoor, Director-General of the DHA, announced details of first report of the health expenditure for the Emirate of Dubai.

He said: "This report will be published annually. The decision to implement the Health Accounts System of Dubai (HASD) is based on three pillars: Firstly, HASD allows measuring the financial dimensions of the health care system in the public and private sectors, which shows the efficiency of the allocation of the health funds. Secondly, HASD enables monitoring changes in the distribution of the available financial resources, comparing Dubai to other regional and international health systems. These changes give the Government and the investors the information necessary to measure the investments size. Thirdly, HASD allows the support and implementation of the health insurance system through monitoring the health spending."

Professor Tawfik Khoja, General Director of the Executive Board of Health Ministers' Council for GCC, said: " The release of this report should be effectively utilized by the private and government sectors in Dubai, UAE, and the Gulf states."

He also invited DHA to share methodologies used in producing the report with the other GCC states.

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