The benefits available to expatriates working and living in Dubai are limited
to free healthcare. There is no social security system in Dubai, so no benefits
are payable if you are unable to work due to illness or injury. In recent years,
Dubai's rulers have begun to encourage international companies to provide healthcare
insurance for their foreign employees, to ease the burden on the public healthcare
system.
If you are not provided with insurance by your employer, you will find a wide
variety of companies offering medical insurance to the expatriate in Dubai.
As with all insurance purchases, it is important to compare the policies on
offer carefully, paying particular attention to the 'small print' and exclusions
of each policy to ensure that you fully understand the level of cover provided.
Almost all policies will exclude pre-existing medical conditions from cover,
while others may exclude 'high risk' leisure activities, the definition of which
can vary from policy to policy. Many policies have a limit on the amount payable
per treatment, or in a given calendar year and some even limit the number of
days hospital stay that you will be covered for.
If you need to make a claim, make sure that you fully understand your insurance
company's requirements. Many insurance companies will require that the doctor/dentist
who provided the treatment completes part or all of the claim form; while he
or she might find this task a nuisance, you may have to insist if you want your
claim to be successful.
Dental insurance policies are also available, often as an add-on to medical
insurance policies, but they can be very expensive. Check carefully what the
policy covers, particularly with regard to routine work such as examinations,
x-rays and dental hygiene services.
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