The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Christie administration did not sign an agreement with a public insurer for National Health Insurance prior to leaving office, The Tribune understands.

The former administration had chosen Family Guardian and its international party, Aetna, to be the public insurer.

NHI officials received approval to sign the contract a day before the election but decided not to sign it pending the election results.

It will be up to the Minnis administration to determine how it will proceed with the matter that experts said is crucial to the proper functioning of NHI.

Dr Delon Brennen, the project manager for NHI, told this newspaper earlier this month that the NHI Authority will temporarily pay doctors directly for the services they offer patients.

The government is paying doctors by way of a capitation model.

A source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday that not all doctors are pleased with the payments they are receiving, even though NHI services are being offered without hindrance.

At least 15,000 people have enrolled in NHI and are eligible to receive primary healthcare services.

However, residents are not yet able to reap all the benefits proposed under the current phase of NHI.

This is because the NHI Secretariat is still trying to secure the support of pharmaceutical companies and lab and diagnostic professionals.

“Pharmacists have been playing hardball,” a source told The Tribune.

“With labs and diagnostics there have been some movements but they want better rates and other things.”

Health Minister Dr Duane Sands has said the Minnis administration is committed to making NHI succeed.

In the past, the Free National Movement has said providing catastrophic coverage to Bahamians will be the main priority of its NHI plans.

The FNM had also expressed concerns about how the government would fund the scheme after former Health Minister Dr Perry Gomez said he did not know how the scheme would be paid for going forward.