RIYADH — Saudi Arabia has established a new Medical Referral Center under the Ministry of Health, tasked with overseeing and organizing medical referral procedures for treatment both inside and outside the Kingdom. The move, approved by the Council of Ministers and published in the official gazette Umm Al-Qura on Friday, outlines 15 core responsibilities for the center. The center will regulate and follow up on medical referrals, including setting procedural and operational rules for air medical evacuations, coordinating with relevant agencies, and deciding on evacuation requests within and outside the Kingdom. It will also handle the review of medical leave reports for civil service employees exceeding 30 days domestically, and all sick leave reports issued abroad, as well as requests for medical disability and health-based prisoner releases, ensuring all actions comply with applicable laws. The center will implement decisions by the High Medical Commission, after approval by the Minister of Health, for treatment cases, supervise health attachés abroad, and monitor hospital bed capacity, efficiency, and occupancy rates. It will manage the movement of medical referrals between health facilities inside and outside Saudi Arabia, assess hospital capacity, provide technical support where needed, and coordinate with relevant bodies to ensure patient eligibility for treatment. Administratively, the center will be part of the Health Ministry's organizational structure, reporting directly to the minister. An oversight committee, chaired by the Minister of Health and including representatives from the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, the Saudi Health Holding Company, the Saudi Chambers Council, the Council of Saudi Universities, the Saudi Health Council, and the National Health Insurance Center, will manage its operations and strategic decisions. Committee meetings will be held at the center's headquarters or other locations within the Kingdom, requiring a majority attendance — including the chair or deputy — for validity, with decisions passed by majority vote.
