Qatar yesterday named an apex body to look after healthcare services provided by government as well as private operators in the country, and put strategies, plans and policies in place to help develop the healthcare sector within the framework of Qatar’s National Vision 2030. Known as the Supreme Council for Health, this autonomous body will also supervise pharmacies — government or private — and laboratories and training centres associated with healthcare. All primary health centres, government and private hospitals, including Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) and its subsidiaries, preventive medical services, private practitioners, their clinics, polyclinics, nursing homes and hospitals and medical rsearch and training centres, have been placed under this key body. The Council, to be chaired by the Heir Apparent, will be responsible for framing the draft of the proposed health insurance law and implementing it. And among its key duties is to encourage scientific and medical research. The Emir, H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, issued a Decree (No 13 of 2009) yesterday setting up the said Council, which the Qatar News Agency said, comes into being with immediate effect. The Council has been empowered to fix the tariff of medical services provided by the state as well as private operators and decide on the pricing of medicines and tariff of paramedical services. The Council, which will have between five and nine members with a four-year renewable tenure, has to ensure that the healthcare services provided here are of international standards and initiate punitive measures against operators for violating the law regulating the health sector. Doha: It will have the authority to issue all licenses needed by the state as well as private healthcare and related service providers. Although the Council is autonomous and will have nothing to do with the Health Ministry, the Health Minister will be its secretary-general with a host of rights and duties, among them, to put national health strategies and policies in place. http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&subsection=Qatar+News&month=April2009&file=Local_News2009040622619.xml

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