The population of Saudi Arabia's willingness to pay for improved level of access to healthcare services: A contingent valuation study

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The Saudi Ministry of Health budget has surged since 2006 to put a strain on government finances at a time when the economy slowed as a result of plummeting oil prices. This study investigated the population of Saudi Arabia's willingness to pay for the healthcare services that are currently provided for free by the Saudi Ministry of Health, in return for improving their level of access. METHODS: Questionnaires were used to collect data from 600 individuals in the Riyadh region. The data were elicited using payment scale format and a two‐part model was employed for data analyses. RESULTS: The empirical analyses showed that the majority of the sample were willing to pay and found nine factors influenced people's willingness to pay—age, gender, education, employment status, nationality, marital status, current eligibility for healthcare services, possession of private health insurance, and having a chronic disease. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that policymakers in Saudi Arabia could reduce the burden on the Ministry of Health budget, while enabling people to improve their access to healthcare services. They might be of use to policymakers to help with fund allocation and priority setting.