Health spending ‘wasteful’ considering low coverage, young population

AMMAN — Healthcare spending in the Kingdom is “wasteful” considering the unsatisfactory coverage and the fact that Jordan has a young population, Prime Minister Omar Razzaz said on Saturday.

Around JD2.2 billion is spent annually on the health sector, both public and private, constituting 8.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), in comparison with JD1 billion a decade ago, the premier said during a health insurance conference held at the Dead Sea Convention Centre, noting that in comparison to global standards the ratio is high.

“Conditions are ripe to devise a clear, comprehensive medical insurance plan within a timeframe,” Razzaz told the gathering, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Preliminary results of a poverty assessment show “good indicators” with regard to health insurance coverage, but they “do not measure up to expectations”, the premier said, noting that data show that some two-thirds of the underprivileged population are covered a form of health insurance. 

He stressed however that middle-class families are at risk of sliding into poverty if one member sustains a costly medical condition, highlighting the necessity of working towards including the under-threat segment in health coverage.

Razzaz announced during the gathering, organised by the Jordan Association for Medical Insurance, that the government will task a small team with recording the conference's outputs and previous studies on comprehensive health insurance to identify the challenges, solutions, proposals and timeframe for establishing comprehensive health insurance for all Jordanians.

“We do not need more studies, all that is required is utilising the previous studies and developing a definite working programme,” he said, noting that the government's priorities for 2019-2020 include including an additional 120,000 citizens under the health insurance umbrella.

The premier also drew attention to the need for encouraging the private sector’s health insurance providers to cover a larger segment of the population to become a substitute for public health insurance, citing successful international experiences in that regard.

For his part, Health Minister Ghazi Zaben reaffirmed that the Kingdom has proved its prominent status in the field of medical tourism, noting that endorsing the medical accountability law is a qualitative leap that will develop the health sector.

Some 73 per cent of Jordanians are currently covered with health insurance, Zaben said, emphasising that the country “has come a long way in the last two decades”.