He said that the number of beneficiaries of treatments through the ministry’s health insurance program amounted to 9 million, of whom 3 million are Saudis.

The minister was speaking at a press conference at the SABIC headquarters on the occasion of the signing of an MoU to establish a specialized hospital for mental health and the treatment of addicts.

Al-Falih conceded that his ministry had failed in the sphere of primary health care centers in neighborhoods. He, however, promised to address the issue so that patients can receive other kinds of treatment before they reach the hospital.

Al-Falih told a local publication that the number of beds in psychiatric clinics was doubled recently, from 3,000 to 6,000, and urged the citizens to donate to organizations that provide social care and welfare to the needy and elderly.

”In view of the growing global and national number of mental health patient cases, the Ministry of Health has opened 23 mental health hospitals, covering all regions and governorates of the Kingdom with a total capacity of 3,000 beds,” said the minister.

This number, he said, is expected to reach 6,000 beds when the projects under implementation are finished.

In addition, he said, “there are 85 clinics in general hospitals and specialist psychiatry departments in the medical cities.”

Referring to a field survey conducted on a number of mental patients and subsistence addicts, he said that the Riyadh region was much in need of the establishment of such a hospital, which SABIC subsequently decided to build.

Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Thunayan Al-Saud, the chairman of SABIC’s board of directors, said the costs to build the specialist hospital for mental health will be SR300 million.

Earlier, SABIC drew up an agreement with the National Commission for Drug Control to launch a national program for drug addiction prevention at a cost of SR50 million over five years.