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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
National Health Insurance registration begins
On Monday, 18th January of this week the government of The Bahamas began phase one or the registration of citizens and legal residents for the National Health Insurance Scheme.
The five phases to the scheme are as follow:
• Phase 1: Registration
• Phase 2: Enrollment
• Phase 3: Primary Health Care Coverage
• Phase 4: Select Catastrophic Coverage
• Phase 5: Full Benefits Coverage
According to the statement, phase two or enrollment for NHI requires individuals to possess a bio-metrics encrypted National Insurance Board (NIB) Smart Card. The NIB has expanded the number of available registration centres to facilitate this exercise. The locations in New Providence are the NIB Headquarters on Baillou Hill Road, the Mall at Marathon and the Enoch Backford Auditorium on Carmichael Road.
The Primary Health Care Phase or phase three of the health plan will be introduced in 2016 at no additional cost to Bahamians. There will be no increases in taxation to cover the cost of this phase and no exchange of money at the point of service will be necessary.
“The Primary Health Care Coverage phase includes visits to your doctor, prevention services, diagnostics (lab and imaging), and medication through a primary care provider” said the statement released by the NHI Secretariat.
“Primary care services will be made available to all legal residents of The Bahamas at no cost at point of service and with no new tax being imposed in this initial phase.
“In this phase, all health costs for primary care services will be paid for by the Government of The Bahamas through general revenue collected by the Ministry of Finance (commonly referred to as the Consolidated Fund).
“Full benefits, including catastrophic care for major illnesses, will be included in NHI as the programme progresses.”
The statement also pointed out ongoing upgrades to the country’s health infrastructure, including upgrades to the Princess Margaret Hospital in Nassau; expansion to the Rand Memorial Hospital in Freeport; and the opening of mini hospitals in Abaco and Exuma. Upgrades will continue as the various phases of the health plan are rolled out.
Gibson: “Our plan is to carry on with universal healthcare”
Notwithstanding that the Consultant Physician Staff Association (CPSA) opted out of the Bahamas’ National Health Insurance (NHI) plan, Labour Minister the Hon. D. Shane Gibson insisted on Monday that the “(government’s) plan is to carry on with universal healthcare.”
The Minister was speaking with reporters at the Paul Farquharson Center after the opening ceremonies of the NIB sponsored compliance symposium on Monday of this week. He was responding to CPSA chief Dr. Locksley Munroe who accused the government of ‘ignoring’ and ‘marginalizing’ the views of the CPSA in the run up to the implementation of NHI.
Holding no ill will against the CPSA, Mr. Gibson told reporters that “for those persons who are not on board, that’s their right. If they think that making the mighty dollar is more important than saving lives, I can’t kill them for that,” said the Minister.
“Our plan is to carry on with universal healthcare. We know for a fact that we will never get everybody onboard, but this is the right thing to do and so we will be doing it.”
Registration commenced nationwide for NHI on Monday, 18th January 2016.
Public Hospital Authority (PHA) announces more healthcare upgrades
In a press release on Tuesday of this week, the Public Hospital Authority (PHA) advised that the Authority will be hiring an additional 22 pharmacists, 22 doctors, 3 surgeons 2 radiologists, 9 biomedical engineers and a number of nurses; the team is expected to be in place by February 2016.
The radiologists, surgeons and pharmacists will be deployed at PHA hospitals and clinics in New Providence and Grand Bahama.
“The engagement of nine biomedical engineers for the Princess Margaret Hospital, the Rand and PHA community clinics is particularly essential at this time so as to ensure greater accountability in the maintenance of critical equipment at our three major hospitals and community clinics” the PHA statement said.
This day in Parliament
The House met on Wednesday of this week (20th Jan 2016) to debate two borrowing resolutions under section 3.1 ‘LOANS’ of the Inter-American Development Bank Act (IDB Act). One was a $33 million loan to fund “a program of public financial management and performance monitoring reform” according to the bill’s sponsor, the State Minister for Finance the Hon. Michael Halkitis.
The second resolution will be a $20 million loan to fund an anti-crime and social intervention program called the Citizens Security Initiative. This initiative will lead to the establishment of a parole system for the orderly and managed reintegration of ex-convicts into society. There is a social re-engineering component to the program.
Minister Halkitis pointed out that the loan was not for budget support but for program development. In this instance the first government program being debated was called “Management for results.”
The highlights and background of the resolution are as follow:
The IDB approved an application for technical cooperation filed by The Bahamas government in June of 2010. A more efficient public administration was the government’s broad objective. Subsequent to that, a grant of $1.6 million was secured by the Bahamas government to study the entire financial landscape of the government. “The overall objective of the program was to introduce the principle of management for results in the various stages of public sector management and administration in The Bahamas” said Halkitis.
The seven components of the financial assessment were as follow:
- Strategic planning: converting government priorities into plans.
- Budget by results: results oriented allocation of resources – not just to heads.
- Public financial management
- Project management
- Monitoring and evaluation of public administration
- Public procurement
- Audit
At the conclusion of the assessment, the consultants engaged delivered a report called the “Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability Assessment (PEFAA).” This was March 2012. With the exception of ‘budget versus outturn’ (where the government scored an ‘A’), the government scored a ‘D’ in most of the fiscal areas assessed; the government accepted the report. So in a nutshell, urgent action was needed to address institutional weaknesses and operational deficiencies in public administration that could lead to public waste.
With this resolution the government of The Bahamas has taken a quantum leap forward in reforming the public service, thereby saving tax payers millions of dollars and significantly improving on the delivery of public goods and services.
The four components of the program loan and itemized direct costs are as follow:
- Performance monitoring: strengthening management capacity ($3.1 million.
- Strengthening the capacity of the Department of Statistics ($3.0 million).
- Strengthening the Public Financial Management regime ($18 million).
- Upgrade of the Public Procurement System ($6 million allocated).
As for indirect costs, $1.2 million are allocated to project management; $180,000 for evaluation and $1.3 million in contingencies for a total program cost of $33 million.
As for the features of the loan, it will be disbursed over five years and repayment begins six months after the last disbursement or in five and one half years from now. The loan will be amortized over 25 years with semi-annual payments. The loan’s interest rate is a floating one – three months LIBOR (London Inter-Bank Offer Rate) plus 150 bases points which works out to 1.77%.
In other Parliamentary news, Central and South Eleuthera member the Hon. Damian Gomez notified the House that the Committee on Privilege will report on their findings stemming from claims of bribery made by Stellar Waste to Energy CEO Dr. Fabrizio Zanaboni by April Fool’s Day. In December 2015, Dr. Zanaboni revealed in an interview that both PLP and FNM members of Parliament asked him for “small” donations before the 2012 general elections. Mr. Grant characterized those claims as bribery and requested a House investigation. To date the committee has not been able to interview Dr. Zanaboni.
This Week with Prime Minister Christie
Prime Minister Christie managed a particularly hectic and very public schedule this week beginning with a short trip to Miami on Monday, 18th January 2016.
Mr. Christie then flew to Jamaica early Tuesday morning to address the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s Regional Investments and Capital Markets Conference in Kingston. The Prime Minister talked about accountability, transparency and financial literacy. He told the conference that in the 21st century, citizens must have “basic financial skills” and “understand how investments and insurance fit into their personal financial plans and national development goals and plans as well.”
Addressing the issue of ease of doing business, the Prime Minister pointed out that The Bahamas ranks 106 in the world in this category but only through positive reforms can countries hold their position or move up the index.
“It is a truism that only through the implementation of positive reforms can nations hold their place or move up this index” said Mr. Christie. One such reform is the online platform at the recently rolled out by the Office of the Registrar General to allow for company incorporations and obtaining certificates of god standing online.
The Prime Minister returned to the capital in the early afternoon to chair his weekly Cabinet meeting.
On Tuesday evening, 19th January 2016 at the C.V. Bethel Senior High School, the Prime Minister addressed supporters at a public meeting. In addition to calling the attendees leaders and urging them to vigorously defend the party, Mr. Christie addressed three governance issues of national import.
On Baha Mar, the PM told supporters that he wrote the President of the China Export/Import Bank about the urgency to complete and open the stalled project. It was urgent because many Bahamian jobs were on hold, Bahamian contractors were owed millions of dollars for services rendered and several hotel operators are interested in taking over the resort.
On the crime front, the Prime Minister warned that the new crime strategy could infringe on personal freedoms and civil liberties as the police would be authorized to conduct search and seizure operations with reasonable suspicion. Also, there will be no difference between the police and the defense force in fighting crime under this new plan.
On National Health Insurance, the Prime Minister decried the high number of avoidable deaths each year because Bahamians do not have adequate access to affordable healthcare; the number quoted in the Sanigest report was 700. Mr. Christie pointed out that doctors questioned the government’s course of action in the event of a discovery of a catastrophic illness during a routine medical exam and medical tests. He said that his government will establish a $25 million fund to pay for catastrophic illnesses.
On Wednesday the Prime Minister attended a sitting of Parliament where a resolution to borrow $33 million finance public service reform was debated. The resolution was pursuant to section 3.1 of the IDB Act. There was unanimous agreement on the bill.
On Thursday morning, 21st January 2016 at the Melia Resort the Prime Minister delivered the keynote address at the 25th Bahamas Business Outlook Conference. He addressed the current national issues such as Baha Mar, the economy generally, tax reform, National Health Insurance and crime. The Prime Minister again called for constructive engagement on NHI, not war of words in the press. On Baha Mar, he assured delegates that a resolution was close, he was unapologetic for his optimism on Baha Mar and revealed that Sol Kerzner (who recently submitted a revised proposal) and the Mohegan Sun are among the high profile suitors for Baha Mar. The theme was “A Bold Agenda: the next twenty-five years.”
Later Thursday evening the Prime Minister addressed delegates at the Hotel and Tourism Marketplace trade show. The venue was Atlantis on Paradise Island.
On Friday, Prime Minister Christie accepted the 2015 Person of The Year award from Jones Communications International; he shared the honour with Central Bank Governor John A. Rolle. The awards luncheon was held at the Melia Resort. The Prime Minister was named Person of The Year principally because of his handling of the economy and the success of the government’s medium term fiscal consolidation plan of which Value Added Tax implementation was a principal component.
In his response, the Prime Minister referred to the consultative and collaborative process undertaken by his government in introducing Value Added Tax (VAT) as an example to again explain his philosophical approach to governance in the wake of the public and at time acrimonious back and forth verbiage over National Health Insurance (NHI).
“There is no need in this country for people to talk to the government from Mount Olympus. There is no need for aerial political bombardment. All you have to do is sit in an office in good faith and say ‘Prime Minister’ or ‘Minister, I disagree.’ Why would any government want to waste its time fighting a medical profession or an insurance agency. Government works on the best advice given to them.
“The industry – the doctors may disagree with that advice but you cannot, you cannot, ever stop a government from executing on a project that is manifestly and undeniably in the best interest of people in this country who are the most disadvantaged.”
Consistent with seeking the best advice on NHI, Mr. Christie revealed that he has invited world renown consultants from the UK, the US and Canada to conduct “another examination at what I’m doing (with NHI).” He said he advised them to take ownership of their advice to him because he intends to act on their expert advice.
Transport Minister provides update on F.I. emergency lighting network
The Minister of Transport and Aviation announced this week that the Emergency Lighting System at the Deadman’s Cay Airport, Long Island which was damaged during Hurricane Joaquin has been fully restored by the Department of Civil Aviation. The Department also carried out remedial works at the Colonel Hill Crooked Island Airport and over the next few days will complete repairs to San Salvador International Airport, the Crooked Island Airport and the Spring Point, Acklins Airport thereby restoring full capacity for emergency flights to these islands and to the respective communities.
Griffin: R.I.S.E. to give families “a fighting chance to rise out of poverty”
As the government continues its fight against poverty through welfare reform, Minister of Social Services and Community Development, the Hon. Melanie Griffin told Parliamentarians on Wednesday that the government is consolidating its assets to more comprehensively assist Bahamian families receiving government assistance.
She was addressing Parliamentarians at a working lunch at the Hilton Hotel during the House lunch break.
By combining the assets of the Ministry of Social Services and Community Development and the Department of Social Services, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health, this comprehensive approach is designed to give families receiving assistance from the Department of Social Services “a fighting chance to rise out of poverty.”
“Ultimately, the reform will ensure that as an agency, we (the Ministry of Social Services and Community Development through the Department of Social Services) are more responsive, efficient and effective in meeting the needs of the most vulnerable,” Mrs. Griffin said.
“A cash grant to qualified households will give the beneficiaries of RISE the flexibility to manage their funds to the optimal benefit of their homes.”
The RISE Programme, also known as the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, is part of the Government’s Social Safety Net Reform Programme and is aimed at promoting human capital development, while alleviating poverty by focusing on changing behaviours in order to improve educational achievement and a healthier lifestyle among poor households.
In Passing…
The National Insurance Board (NIB) held a compliance symposium for its inspectors and other stakeholders. Topics covered were “The importance of NIB” and “Compliance: A historical perspective.” The keynote address was delivered by the Minister of Labour, National Insurance and the Public Service, the Hon. D. Shane Gibson.
A number of leaders from the local trade union movement held a demonstration outside of Parliament on Wednesday to protest the increase in fees for basic cable services granted to Cable Bahamas Limited (CBL) by URCA. The labour leaders also accused CBL of breaking the labour laws of The Bahamas by failing to recognize labour unions. They further accused CBL of demoting four Bahamian workers to accommodate four foreign workers and would like to see CBL fully staffed by Bahamians.
Minister for the Environment and Housing the Hon. Kenred Dorsett test drove a 100% electronic Nissan Leaf car on Wednesday of this week. This line of cars is being sold by Easy Eco Cars, owned by Ms. Pia Farmer
On Thursday of this week, The Bahamas Supreme Court dismissed an application for summary judgment submitted by Cable Bahamas Limited. The summary judgment was to determine liability in a fuel spill at the Rubis gas station on Robinson Road. Cable Bahamas filed the application on the grounds of negligence and nuisance on the part of Rubis with respect to the oil spill.
Byran Woodside, former Pinewood Member of Parliament for the FNM, State Minister in the Ingraham government, attorney, petroleum marketing expert and businessman officially joined the PLP on Thursday. Mr. Woodside addressed the National General Council of the PLP at their monthly meeting. Also addressing Councilors was Mr. Norris Bain, the FNM candidate for Marco City in the 2012 general elections
A severe weather system developed over the central and northwest Bahamas on Thursday prompting school closures on the islands of Andros, the Berry Islands, New Providence and Grand Bahama on Friday.
About the author: Elcott Coleby is a Deputy Director at the
Bahamas Information Services. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in
Chemistry (B.Sc) and a Masters of Business Administration (MBA). He provides
frequent commentary on public policy and communicates the works of the
government. Address all comments to the following email:
egcoleby44@gmail.com
© Copyright 2016 by thebahamasweekly.com
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