The Council of Cooperative Health Insurance (CCHI) would cancel the licenses of insurance firms if they fail to provide adequate health benefits to policyholders, an official from the organization said recently.

Ali Al-Qahtani, director of studies and research at the CCHI, the country's oversight body, said that the law allows the CCHI to cancel the licenses, temporarily and permanently, of those firms found without basic coverage in their policies.

This includes coverage for pregnancy and childbirth and the treatment of children born through artificial fertilization, regardless of the employment contract.

If the worker is male, his health insurance should include his wife, or wives, all children under the age of 25, and unmarried daughters.

If the employee is a woman, her health insurance, if she chooses, can include her husband, even if he is employed in the government sector and is exempted from obtaining compulsory health insurance, employed in another sector that does provide him with compulsory health insurance, or is unemployed.

Insurance for employed women must include coverage for all children under the age of 25 and unmarried daughters.

The CCHI board recently held an expanded meeting with 45 executives, department directors, and heads of medical departments of 28 health insurance companies, to review the latest developments in the health insurance market. Attendees discussed the recent amendments of the CCHI's regulations, and reviewed plans for future projects.

Abdullah bin Ibrahim Al-Sharif, secretary general of the CCHI, said the meeting was held to remove barriers facing the industry, and promote awareness about the health insurance system and its regulations.

He said the CCHI reviews and amends its regulations every three years, or whenever the need arises, to keep up with developments and new legislation.