Kuwait Expats Are Now Required to Pay Fees for Blood Transfusions

Kuwaiti Health Minister, Ahmad Al-Awadhi, announced a new decision that requires expatriates to pay fees for blood transfusions. 

The decision applies to both residents and visitors to preserve the state's strategic blood reserves.

According to the decision, expats in the Gulf country will be charged KD 20 for each bag of blood, while expats on a visit visa will be charged KD 40 per bag.

The fees for bags of blood, however, will not be collected from expats in emergencies, urgent cases, cancer patients, children, or other humanitarian cases. 

The fees will only be collected from expats undergoing non-emergency scheduled operations.

Patients who find their own blood donors will also be exempted from the fees.

Also, fees will be collected from expats for up to 37 lab tests related to blood transfusions, ranging between KD 0.5 and KD 15 for expats residing in Kuwait and KD 5 to KD 70 for expats on visit visas.