Outrageous Upcharges from Doctors. Watch Out!

catch a flight to France........... it is cheaper...............

Dude go to London yourself, ticket is 2500QR, get the medicine and meet some cute ladies as well.

ohhhhhhhhhhh mine.. 3 times is toooooooooooo much.... cant even think of it!!

@ qatareze,sorry mate,there is NOTHING illegal in Qatar about the charges of private clinics/hospitals/doctors...they are free to charge what they want,it's upto the patient to decide if they want to pay it or not...there is no provision in the law of the State of Qatar that in any way regulates the prices charged by the private sector...

contraban it isn`t ..illegal yes..u should contact police or someone dealing with this kind of case..

I decided to investigate a little bit more about how Maghrabi orders their medicine on behalf of patients.

Well, they do not order from France as I was told. There is an agent here in Doha who handles all of Maghrabi orders. I went straight there, talked to the agent myself, and found out the actual cost. As of now, I can't convince the agent to order the medicine for me yet due to the fact that they have an agreement with the hospital. A..... Ha...........!

I also decided to visit another hospital/doctor for a second opinion. The quote I received was cheaper.

Based on your comments, it's probably better to take a vacation back home and purchase the med from there. The price Maghrabi quoted me will definitely covers my airline ticket, hotels, vacations at the beach or resorts, and BEST of all my allergy medicine.

Cheers,

there is something fishy in this thread! I know somebody from the Al Ahli pharmacy! Let's check it out! There must be some misunderstanding here!

MAybe that Frenchmedicine comes with a free holiday in France? Lol! To cure the allergy of course!

@ xpatadventure,going home for the summer?...if so,may i suggest you go there & see a REAL doctor?...mind you,even if you weren't going on holiday,you could fly home,see a doctor & get your meds...for less than the figure you were quoted...so really,i don't think you need to ponder this one too much now do you mate?...

It's highly likely that the medicine prescribed to you will not be available over the counter in Qatar(like a LOT of other medication) so the crooks @ Maghrabi are trying to pull a fast one on you,for all you know,they have stock of this stuff in the Al Ahli pharmacy already(of course if you were to approach the pharmacy yourself they would obviously give you the same "We have to specially fly this in for you by charter aircraft under armed guard" spiel)...

The community in this country(both local & expat) are earning themselves a reputation of "lots of spare cash,very little common sense" tag & it's issues like this that contribute towards that tag,the guys @ Maghrabi think they can get away with this because obviously,in the past,they have...

As for complaining to the relevant authorities,don't bother,i deal with them on a regular basis,their reply is going to be that they have no jurisdiction over prices charged by private practitioners/hospitals,why do you think Maghrabi boldly quoted you such a ridiculous figure mate?...do you think they would if it was any way opening them up to liability & prosecution? i think not...

Whatever you decide to do,as a fellow medical professional,i can tell you,there are WAY better ways to spend Qrs. 27,000. wouldn't you agree?...

Whoaaaa!!i prefered to use the term "Milking the cow" instead:D..ask if they are offering installment??lols..

Sameeh .. are you mariam?

Looks like your thoughts are alike.

buddy call the ministry of health and check it with them if they told you it is illegal then report it..

Better you go in HAMAD

just call the ministry of health and check it with them if they told you it is illegal then report it

ouchhhhh! the price would probably make me more sick!...

i feel bad that such a simple ailment can cost so much to people who do no know other modes of treatment..

back home, i would treat such a patient with a remedy which would just cost him 1 dollar !!

i know no one would believe me..

....you can buy a 2nd hand Toyota Camry with that amount of money :oP......

It's blantant profiteering and it's Qatar that pays for this through

their insurance companies

with that money we can get a heart surgery done in India

:-(

see some other doctor...never in my life have I heard of such exhorbitant price for allergy medicines.

I remember reading an article where hospitals charge you the "cost of dispensing" which adds on a percentage of the salaries of all the people in the hospital who come into contact with the product. From receptionist to shipping & receiving clerk to secretary to nurse to doctor to pharmacist. I read about one hospital that charged over $100 for a simple aspirin that costs about $.01.

Best to go to get all medicines from Hamad.

to suck,imagine if a poor labourer get such prescription

better consult with HMC..

That's outrageous!I for the life of me cannot imagine spending that much money on allergy related treatments despite suffering from some myself. Try confronting the doc first..maybe he'll offer a cheaper option. Personally I wouldn't go to Al Ahli..period! They are waaaaaaaay expensive!

Your allergic medicine is too expensive buddy..I can't even think to spend this much in my wildest dream..