IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/aphecp/v16y2018i1d10.1007_s40258-017-0353-7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Healthcare Finance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Study of Householders’ Attitudes

Author

Listed:
  • Mohammed Khaled Al-Hanawi

    (King Abdulaziz University
    Aston University)

  • Omar Alsharqi

    (King Abdulaziz University)

  • Saja Almazrou

    (King Saud University)

  • Kirit Vaidya

    (Aston University)

Abstract

Background The public sector healthcare system in Saudi Arabia, essentially financed by oil revenues and ‘free at the point of delivery’, is coming under increasing strain due to escalating expenditure and an increasingly volatile oil market and is likely to be unsustainable in the medium to long term. Objectives This study examines how satisfied the Saudi people are with their public sector healthcare services and assesses their willingness to contribute to financing the system through a national health insurance scheme. The study also examines public preferences and expectations of a future national health insurance system. Methods A total of 36 heads of households participated in face-to-face audio-recorded semi-structured interviews. The participants were purposefully selected based on different socio-economic and socio-demographic factors from urban and rural areas to represent the geographical diversity that would presumably influence individual views, expectations, preferences and healthcare experiences. Results The evidence showed some dissatisfaction with the provision and quality of current public sector healthcare services, including the availability of appointments, waiting times and the availability of drugs. The households indicated a willingness to contribute to a national insurance scheme, conditional upon improvements in the quality of public sector healthcare services. The results also revealed a variety of preferences and expectations regarding the proposed national health insurance scheme. Conclusions Quality improvement is a key factor that could motivate the Saudi people to contribute to financing the healthcare system. A new authority, consisting of a partnership between the public and private sectors under government supervision, could represent an acceptable option for addressing the variation in public preferences.

Suggested Citation

  • Mohammed Khaled Al-Hanawi & Omar Alsharqi & Saja Almazrou & Kirit Vaidya, 2018. "Healthcare Finance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Study of Householders’ Attitudes," Applied Health Economics and Health Policy, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 55-64, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:aphecp:v:16:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1007_s40258-017-0353-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s40258-017-0353-7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s40258-017-0353-7
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s40258-017-0353-7?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Balabanova, Dina & McKee, Martin, 2004. "Reforming health care financing in Bulgaria: the population perspective," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 58(4), pages 753-765, February.
    2. Pablo Gottret & George Schieber, 2006. "Health Financing Revisited : A Practitioner's Guide," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7094.
    3. Kutzin, Joseph, 2001. "A descriptive framework for country-level analysis of health care financing arrangements," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(3), pages 171-204, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Al-Hanawi, Mohammed Khaled, 2021. "Decomposition of inequalities in out-of-pocket health expenditure burden in Saudi Arabia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 286(C).
    2. Leena Eklund Karlsson & Anne Leena Ikonen & Kothar Mohammed Alqahtani & Pernille Tanggaard Andersen & Subash Thapa, 2020. "Health Equity Lens Embedded in the Public Health Policies of Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Document Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(4), pages 21582440209, October.
    3. Mohammed Khaled Al-Hanawi & Sarh Almubark & Ameerah M N Qattan & Agnieszka Cenkier & Ewa Agnieszka Kosycarz, 2020. "Barriers to the implementation of public-private partnerships in the healthcare sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(6), pages 1-15, June.
    4. Mohammed Khaled Al-Hanawi & Rubayyat Hashmi & Sarh Almubark & Ameerah M. N. Qattan & Mohammad Habibullah Pulok, 2020. "Socioeconomic Inequalities in Uptake of Breast Cancer Screening among Saudi Women: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of a National Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-13, March.
    5. Amal Almalki & Mohammed Al-Hanawi, 2018. "Public Private Partnerships and Collaboration in the Health Sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Study," Global Journal of Health Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 10(6), pages 1-10, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. World Bank, 2008. "Kosovo : Health Financing Reform Study," World Bank Publications - Reports 8121, The World Bank Group.
    2. Melvin Obadha & Jane Chuma & Jacob Kazungu & Edwine Barasa, 2019. "Health care purchasing in Kenya: Experiences of health care providers with capitation and fee‐for‐service provider payment mechanisms," International Journal of Health Planning and Management, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(1), pages 917-933, January.
    3. Cuadrado, Cristóbal & Crispi, Francisca & Libuy, Matías & Marchildon, Gregory & Cid, Camilo, 2019. "National Health Insurance: A conceptual framework from conflicting typologies," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(7), pages 621-629.
    4. Besstremyannaya, Galina, 2015. "Measuring the effect of health insurance companies on the quality of healthcare systems with kernel and parametric regressions," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 38(2), pages 3-20.
    5. Pablo Gottret & George Schieber, 2006. "Health Financing Revisited : A Practitioner's Guide," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7094.
    6. Bruno Nikolic, 2015. "Slovenian Complementary Health Insurance Reform - Dichotomy between the Internal Market and the Social Dimension," DANUBE: Law and Economics Review, European Association Comenius - EACO, issue 4, pages 205-216, December.
    7. Todorova, Irina L.G. & Baban, Adriana & Balabanova, Dina & Panayotova, Yulia & Bradley, Janet, 2006. "Providers' constructions of the role of women in cervical cancer screening in Bulgaria and Romania," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 63(3), pages 776-787, August.
    8. Bryndová, Lucie & Hroboň, Pavel & Tulejová, Henrieta, 2019. "The 2018 risk-adjustment reform in the Czech Republic: Introducing Pharmacy-based Cost Groups and strengthening reinsurance," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(8), pages 700-705.
    9. Kremastioti Vasiliki & Anastasiou Athanasios & Liargovas Panagiotis & Komninos Dimitrios & Dermatis Zacharias, 2018. "Economic Evaluation of Health Programs – Health Expenditures in the European Union," Valahian Journal of Economic Studies, Sciendo, vol. 9(1), pages 109-118, April.
    10. Adam Wagstaff, 2010. "Social health insurance reexamined," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(5), pages 503-517, May.
    11. Sameera Awawda & Mohammad Abu-Zaineh & Bruno Ventelou, 2019. "Who Bears the Burden of Universal Health Coverage? An Assessment of Alternative Financing Policies Using an Overlapping generations General Equilibrium Model," Working Papers 1335, Economic Research Forum, revised 21 Aug 2019.
    12. Mathauer, Inke & Nicolle, Emmanuelle, 2011. "A global overview of health insurance administrative costs: what are the reasons for variations found?," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(2), pages 235-246.
    13. Galina Besstremyannaya, 2014. "Urban inequity in the performance of social health insurance system: evidence from Russian regions," Working Papers w0204, Center for Economic and Financial Research (CEFIR).
    14. Agnès Soucat & Ilona Kickbusch, 2020. "Global Common Goods for Health: Towards a New Framework for Global Financing," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 11(5), pages 628-635, November.
    15. Aditya Goenka & Lin Liu, 2020. "Infectious diseases, human capital and economic growth," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 70(1), pages 1-47, July.
    16. Mark Stabile & Sarah Thomson, 2014. "The Changing Role of Government in Financing Health Care: An International Perspective," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 52(2), pages 480-518, June.
    17. Saleema Razvi & Amir Ullah Khan, 2015. "Health Financing in South Asia—The Role of Public–Private Partnerships," South Asian Survey, , vol. 22(1), pages 15-36, March.
    18. Heenkenda, Shirantha, 2016. "The Determinants of Dropouts from Voluntary Pension Scheme: Evidence from Sri Lanka," MPRA Paper 72481, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Perianayagam, Arokiasamy & Goli, Srinivas, 2013. "Health insurance and health care in India: a supply-demand perspective," MPRA Paper 51103, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 31 Oct 2013.
    20. Liang, Li-Lin & Mirelman, Andrew J., 2014. "Why do some countries spend more for health? An assessment of sociopolitical determinants and international aid for government health expenditures," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 161-168.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:aphecp:v:16:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1007_s40258-017-0353-7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.