Overview
Bahrain has a universal healthcare system that is free for all Bahraini citizens and
heavily subsidized for non-Bahrainis. Bahrain has been working toward becoming a
strong healthcare provider in the Gulf region, as the government sees healthcare as
another way for the destination to evolve into a service-oriented economy once oil
revenues declined. Greater medical tourism traffic is one element of Kingdom’s Vision
2030; members of the government are hopeful it could spur some movement in the
sector. Efforts through the Supreme Health Council to improve healthcare quality and
patient safety through the accreditation of hospitals and clinics are ongoing; potential
target patient markets have already been identified to include the GCC (most notably
Saudi Arabia, where most tourists emanate), yet competition from Dubai, Abu Dhabi,
and Iran is high.
Bahrain is flying foreign doctors into Bahrain to treat patients in an effort to reduce the money they spend subsidizing outbound medical tourism, estimated at USD $66 million. Bahrain’s healthcare sector regularly pursues international partnerships and collaboration to assist in building the capacity of clinical services. This will be an important part of its medical tourism potential growth. Bahrain’s continued investment in its medical tourism sector has shown results in the MTI. In 2016, Bahrain ranked 35th out of 41 countries in Quality of Care; now Bahrain ranks 24th out of 46 countries. Its profile as a traditional tourist destination remains low, but strategic industry investments and government initiatives have positioned Bahraini clinics as one of the better healthcare options in the region, behind those in Dubai or Abu Dhabi.
*Based on the 2020 – 2021 Global MTI (Medical Tourism Index) Report published by the Medical Tourism Association.*
Bahrain is flying foreign doctors into Bahrain to treat patients in an effort to reduce the money they spend subsidizing outbound medical tourism, estimated at USD $66 million. Bahrain’s healthcare sector regularly pursues international partnerships and collaboration to assist in building the capacity of clinical services. This will be an important part of its medical tourism potential growth. Bahrain’s continued investment in its medical tourism sector has shown results in the MTI. In 2016, Bahrain ranked 35th out of 41 countries in Quality of Care; now Bahrain ranks 24th out of 46 countries. Its profile as a traditional tourist destination remains low, but strategic industry investments and government initiatives have positioned Bahraini clinics as one of the better healthcare options in the region, behind those in Dubai or Abu Dhabi.
*Based on the 2020 – 2021 Global MTI (Medical Tourism Index) Report published by the Medical Tourism Association.*