Health insurance premiums for housemaids is expected to rise dramatically to cover additional women’s health expenses, according to the Council of Health Insurance.

However, coverage will be delayed due to the inability of insurance companies to accommodate the large number of housemaids.

Insurance officials expected the increase in premiums of housemaid insurance to be 30 to 35 percent more than that of men. Increased premiums are due to the inclusion of gynecology insurance, but not pregnancy and childbirth.

Imad Al-Din Al-Husseini, vice chairman of the Insurance Committee in the Eastern Province Chamber, said the implementation of the council’s decision may take some time, as the number of female housemaids far exceeds that of men.

Nonetheless, he said, no final decision was issued concerning the mechanisms of implementing insurance programs for domestic help.

“To date, no binding decision was issued to force household employers to include domestic help in health insurance programs,” he said, explaining that insurance companies were not capable of accommodating the large number of female housemaids.

“In this case, it is only an individual decision,” he said, pointing out that 34 insurance companies operate in the Eastern Province.

The Saudi insurance sector lacks an information center that could provide the number of workers, their nationalities, ages and other information, he said, adding, “This is necessary information since insurance companies need this type of information to accommodate domestic workers.”

Al-Husseini said prices are determined by the category of the coverage required. “The minimum rates range between SR500 and 1,000 annually per capita. It is difficult to come up with unified fees,” he added.