Spotlight on Healthcare & Life Sciences
We enter 2025 with the healthcare and life sciences sectors in the GCC region having been marked by significant growth, with governments actively implementing reforms to improve quality, accessibility, and efficiency of healthcare services and strategies to significantly improve the life sciences. As these sectors continue to be a focal point for transformation, development, and investment, this edition of Law Update brings timely and relevant insights into the key legal and regulatory challenges and opportunities across the Middle East.
As we reflect on the 50th anniversary of Arab Health, it is essential to acknowledge the region’s remarkable progress in healthcare, both in terms of medical technology and healthcare delivery systems. Arab Health remains a key event for stakeholders across the industry; our article, “Celebrating 50 Years of Arab Health: A Look Back and a Look Forward”, co-authored with the Dubai Science Park, looks back at its impact over the years and the exciting developments on the horizon.
Recent changes to the UAE’s foreign ownership laws in the healthcare sector mark a pivotal shift, opening up new opportunities for international investors and healthcare providers to expand their operations into the UAE.
These policy changes aim to enhance the sector’s growth, adoption of innovations, and overall international competitiveness. Our article, “Navigating the Evolution: Insights into Foreign Ownership Changes in the UAE Healthcare Industry”, provides a detailed look at these changes and what they mean for businesses looking to enter or expand in the UAE healthcare market.
Artificial intelligence (‘AI’) continues to be a game-changer in the healthcare industry. As the UAE positions itself as a global leader in AI innovation, the legal and ethical implications of AI integration in healthcare must be carefully considered. In this Law Update issue, we have two articles looking at the regulatory and legal landscape applicable to AI. Our article, “AI in Healthcare: Legal and Ethical Challenges and Opportunities in the UAE”, explores important UAE regulatory challenges, including data privacy, liability, and the ethical use of AI in healthcare practices. We aim to provide clarity on how businesses can navigate these challenges to take full advantage of AI’s potential in healthcare. In respect of KSA, our article titled “AI in Healthcare – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” provides an update on the latest regulatory developments, including recent generative AI guidelines.
The healthcare and life science sectors are also seeing a growing emphasis on sustainability and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practice, propelled forward not only by individual organizations but also by changing governmental policies and requirements. Our article, “ESG and Sustainability in Healthcare in the UAE: Paving the Way for a Greener and Smarter Future”, takes a deep dive into the UAE’s vision to become a global leader in the green economy and embracing ESG and sustainability initiatives in the healthcare sector.
In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Vision 2030 programs are well underway; our article, “In Case You Missed It: Key Saudi Medical Device and Pharmaceutical Regulatory Developments of 2024”, highlights the significant regulatory updates from the Saudi Food and Drug Authority and the Council for Health Insurance. In our article “United Arab Emirates – In Case You Missed It: Key UAE Healthcare Legislative and Regulatory Developments of 2024”, we look back on 2024 and the profound changes in the UAE's healthcare regulatory framework, marked by the introduction of new laws and amendments that underscore the nation’s commitment to improving healthcare standards and safeguarding patient rights.
While the UAE and KSA are the main markets for the healthcare and life sciences industries in the region, ample reforms are also occurring in other GCC markets. The recent launch of the University Medical City in Oman (see our article titled “The New University Medical City of Oman”) and the implementation of mandatory health insurance for visitors in Qatar (see our article titled “Mandatory Health Insurance for Visitors in Qatar”) have substantial implications for the healthcare landscape in the region. In Kuwait, changes to the regulations governing the practice of pharmacy and related professions in both the public and private sectors aim to enhance the standards of pharmacy practice in the state (See our article titled “Recent Updates by the Ministry of Health in Kuwait – Pharmacy and Healthcare Advertisement”).
In Bahrain, in line with the Bahrain Genome Project, the Ministry of Health inaugurated NovaseqTM X Plus machine, a state-of-the-art human genome sequencing machine, making Bahrain the first country in the Middle East to utilize this technology for human genome sequencing (see our article title “Bahrain’s Healthcare Evolution: From Pioneering Genome Sequencing to Legislative Reform”).
With these exciting developments in mind, we remain committed to providing our clients with the legal expertise and strategic insight they need to navigate this fast-evolving sector. We hope that this Healthcare and Life Sciences focused edition of Law Update offers valuable insights into the critical issues shaping the future of healthcare and life sciences in the region.
Andrea TithecottPartner, Head of Healthcare & Life Sciences
