HAAD: New Mechanism to Access Outpatient Services

Effective from 1st September 2017, patients seeking a second or subsequent outpatient appointment for the same specialty within 21 days, without a doctor’s referral, will only be covered if the patient obtains pre-approval by calling the relevant number below:

• For Thiqa card holders Tel: 02 - 419 4940 (Bawabat Thiqa - this covers appointments across the UAE);
• For Non -Thiqa card holders, please refer to the attachment.

This new process excludes the following: patient’s first visit for a specific symptom, children (under the age of 18), those aged 60 years and above, health screening visits, vaccination visits, and emergencies.

Adeeb Al Zaabi, Manager of Corporate Communication Department at HAAD, said: “As healthcare regulator for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, our paramount objective is to improve the community health and quality of service. This new mechanism will also help increase efficiencies, while optimizing quality of care.”

As stated previously, this applies to outpatients only, while those with doctors’ referrals are exempt. This system does not apply to Daman Basic Policy holders, who have their own eligibility criteria.

The new process also does not cancel existing restrictions on entitlements in health insurance policies.