DOHA: The decision of the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) to introduce a uniform pricing mechanism for the recently launched National Insurance Scheme has caused concern among private healthcare providers. The issue was raised at an interactive session on the insurance scheme at the Qatar Chamber yesterday, attended by Dr Faleh Mohammed Hussain Ali, Assistant Secretary General for Policy Affairs at SCH and representatives from insurance companies and private clinics and hospitals.
The SCH has introduced a unified coding system for clinics and hospitals to facilitate standardisation of fees and services under the insurance scheme.
Addressing the meeting, Faleh said the coding system will not only help standardise prices, but also reduce the cost of medical treatment.
The SCH launched the first phase of the insurance scheme in July targeting Qatari women.
A total of 10,000 women have benefited from the scheme being offered through seven hospitals, including three private hospitals, said Faleh.
The newly set up National Health Insurance Company (NHIC) functioning under the SCH is responsible for implementing the scheme.
Many professionals in the health sector, however, questioned the rationale behind the decision to introduce uniform prices.
Talking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the meeting, they said it was ‘unfair’ for the SCH to expect same price for different quality of services.
“It’s very disturbing for the hospitals that offer quality services to expect a price on a par with the fee of a hospital that offers relatively poor service,” said a top executive of a hospital.
There are wide disparities in prices being charged by hospitals for identical medical examinations and treatments in Qatar.
A uniform fee is not a good economics, argued another executive from the private health sector.
“The quality of staff is different from one hospital to another. Salary packages of health staff also vary from institution to institution,” he said.
Some hospitals that charge a higher fee have better medical practitioners and paramedics compared with other hospitals. The procedure cost in some hospitals in Doha is almost double the cost in other hospitals or clinics, said the administration manager of a clinic, seeking anonymity.
An official from a private hospital implementing the scheme said the unified pricing system is functioning effectively.
“There is a unified fee for every patient visit or ‘encounter’, that will be decided based on the nature of the disease, qualification of the physician, diagnosis, medication and treatment.
“We have to provide details of all visits through the uniform coding system. The NHIC will then give a price package that will cover everything, starting from consultation to medication,” he said.
He said the pricing and the cost of treatment have been unified under the scheme.
“If you go to a consultant at any facility for a specific treatment, you will be charged the same everywhere. If a patient is not happy with the treatment he has the right to change the doctor or the hospital the next time,” he added.
Replying to queries from the audience, Dr Faleh said any anomalies that might have crept into the insurance policy would be rectified.
However, he said the uniform price would help all hospitals raise the quality benchmark of their services.
He said the insurance scheme will initially be implemented through select facilities, while all healthcare providers will be brought under the scheme in 10 years, in a phased manner.
All citizens, expatriates and visitors to the country will be covered by the mandatory insurance scheme by the end of 2015, he added.
The Peninsula
