Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 10, 2016:  The Dubai Health Authority’s Health Funding Department, has introduced eAuthorization for insurance claims, said a top health official.

From January 2017, the health sector will move to an electronic authorization process for insurance claims.

The move means that beginning next year insurance claims that need approval will be processed online in real time, making the process quicker and more convenient for patients.

“The move is in line with our efforts to completely transform the health insurance system into an electronic one. The health sector was given a year to voluntarily adapt to the new system, additionally, we also held several workshops so that they understand how to use the system. For providers and health insurance companies, it means real-time approvals without the need to go back-and-forth on phone calls and present papers for authorization. For patients, the approval and treatment process becomes quicker and convenient.”

The eAuthorization will take place through the DHA’s eClaimLink which is an all-in-one electronic hub that manages health transactions with its medical, financial and administrative information with superior efficiency. 

The link offers a faster, smarter and more efficient pathway and will help strengthen Dubai’s role as a world-class health regulator and provider.

The DHA has been meeting with all health care providers and health insurance companies within Dubai to educate them on the new system. More than 1100 provers and insurance companies attended a technical workshop to educate them on usage and benefits of eAuthorization.

Some of the benefits from eAuthorization’s are:

1. Improved patient safety and enhance overall quality of care by eliminating risks caused by hand-written requests, decreasing the risk of medication errors and decreasing liability risks.
2. Reduces or eliminates phone calls and call-backs between healthcare providers and health insurance companies. 
3. Increase in cost  efficiency as policy holders benefits will be disclosed to the healthcare provider and a decision can be made by the patient on how they want to proceed.
4. Provides a standard and unified template for exchange of information.
5. Streamlines the requests and authorization processes.
6. Increases patient convenience by reducing wait times while waiting for prior authorizations for a service or drug.
7. Transparency and the most up-to-date financial information regarding the patients plan by allowing live communication between healthcare providers and health insurance companies.
8. Knowing the patient’s medical history prior to a patient receiving a service or drug can serve as an alert to a healthcare provider.