DUBAI, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- Medical tourism sales in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) increased 5.5 percent year-over-year to reach 12.1 billion dirhams (3.3 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, with growth supported by several government-led initiatives, according to an analysis released by Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The analysis, based on recent data from Euromonitor and Fitch Solutions, revealed that health expenditure in the UAE amounted to an estimated 50.3 billion dirhams (13.61 billion dollars) in 2018, marking a 5.4 percent increase compared to the previous year, reported the official news agency WAM on Tuesday.
Key factors supporting this growth trend include new medical tourism initiatives implemented by government entities and increasing sector privatization in the form of investment and by building state-of-the-art health facilities.
According to the analysis, there were 154 hospitals in the UAE in 2018, up from 107 in 2013. UAE hospitals saw 49.1 million patient visits last year.
