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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
(Statement) Labour
Minister Shane Gibson’s recent attempt to bash the private sector for
its good-faith effort to contribute to the achievement of universal
health coverage was both unhelpful and unfriendly.
On top of
that, his comments are just plain wrong - and he should be in a position
to know better. The insurance industry believes, as do many others,
that universal health coverage is a necessity and Bahamians should not
have to suffer financial hardship to pay for healthcare.
The
question for us is not ‘if' universal healthcare should be implemented,
the question is ‘how'. The smart thing to do would be to work together
to develop the best, most affordable, and least disruptive plan to
achieve that goal.
Our industry wants to be at the table
engaging in real consultation, but we have had no substantive
communication from the government in 10 months - despite the fact that
we have the actuarial expertise and administrative experience to play a
key role in the implementation of National Health Insurance (NHI).
Minister
Gibson sought to demonise the private sector by alleging that "people
with money” were resistant to any change that “interfered with their
profits”. He also said that what may have been effective a century ago
wouldn’t continue to be so in today’s world.
This is old hat
political theatre. The very nature of our business demands that we adapt
to change in order to survive. As insurers, we are well aware that
universal health coverage will bring about necessary change to our
business models and operations. Our point is that we ought to work
together to ensure the best outcome and avoid economic disruption.
In
this regard, Minister Gibson claimed that the government was in the
process of getting feedback from all stakeholders, and was already in
communication with insurance companies, who were "at the table now.”
We
are not sure what table he is referring to. The BIA has been invited to
hear the presentations of foreign consultants on the way NHI should be
implemented. But neither they, nor the government, are listening to our
concerns and proposals. As Bahamian employers, taxpayers, professionals
and good corporate citizens, we deserve better treatment.
The BIA
was not at first a part of the original, but now defunct, NHI Advisory
Committee. We had to ask the Minister of Health to be included. That was
in June 2014. In August 2014, we wrote to the NHI Advisory Committee
and NHI Implementation Team expressing our concerns and seeking
dialogue. We have not received any response to that correspondence.
In
November 2014, the heads of all major health insurers and the chairman
of the BIA wrote to the prime minister offering our support and asking
to meet with him to discuss the implementation of NHI. After weeks of
follow-up, we were able to extract a one-paragraph note from the Office
of the Prime Minister stating that our letter had been forwarded to
relevant agencies.
We challenge Minister Gibson to produce any
substantive communications from the government to the BIA in response to
our legitimate concerns and recommendations.
At the same time,
we renew our call to the government to begin a genuine process of direct
engagement and dialogue with the private sector so that we can begin to
work together to better serve our people. In this regard, we restate
our position that a government-run insurance company makes no economic
sense.
We have presented the government with the framework of an
alternative approach, as contained in the BIA's position paper on
universal health coverage. Real consultation involves the sharing of
ideas and views to arrive at the best possible solution. Exploration of
different perspectives and capacities can only enhance the process.
The
BIA is on record supporting the concept of universal health coverage.
We note that this government has been a proponent of public-private
partnerships and we remain optimistic that this pragmatic approach will
be adopted in the case of NHI.
© Copyright 2015 by thebahamasweekly.com
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