In tough times, health is a casualty
As one looks further down the income scale, the gap becomes clear – people who earn the least are most likely to have stopped or cut back on spending on their own health care.
For workers earning less than Dh45,000 (US$12,000) a year, more than half (51 per cent) are in that position, cutting back or stopping spending on both prescription and over-the-counter medicines.
Meanwhile, of those in the top income bracket, earning more than Dh250,000 a year, just 23 per cent say they have cut or stopped their spending on prescription medicines, and 26 per cent on over-the-counter drugs.
Ruch de Silva, a health care consulting analyst with Datamonitor, which conducted a study of 305 men and women across the country, says that the high price of drugs in the UAE. The World Health Organisation found last year that medicines cost 23 times more than the international recommended prices.
“During a recession like this, people would tighten their belts
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