Health services only via e-payment from Jan 1

Muscat: With the Ministry of Health (MoH) barring cash transactions for its services, payments can only be made through e-payment mode (debit/credit cards) from January 1, 2018. Although the e-payment service was started in October 2016, it was optional for patients. E-payment services were launched as part of the government’s efforts to streamline procedures. The primary health centres and major government hospitals will accept payments only through cards. No deadline has been set to move to a complete cashless system by 2026, but it is part of a long-term strategy for e-governance.