The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement Chairman Michael Pintard blasted the government yesterday for attempting to push through “a shell of a programme” in the absence of the needed prerequisites for National Health Insurance.

Mr Pintard questioned Prime Minister Perry Christie’s new position that he was more concerned with getting NHI right than sticking to a timeline, when he had previously said the government would not delay the healthcare scheme.

The senator said lives are at stake and the longer the government takes to get it right, the more people will suffer.

Mr Pintard said it was unfortunate that while politicians have health insurance at the expense of taxpayers, time was now not a factor for the prime minister.

NHI’s primary healthcare phase was expected to be introduced in April.

Earlier this week, Minister of Health Dr Perry Gomez said a NHI delay was “likely”.

When asked about this on Wednesday, Mr Christie did not give any indication of how long a delay the government was considering.

Mr Pintard said: “Unfortunately, Mr Christie has a tendency to speak first about an initiative without him and his colleagues having already done the necessary ground work and infrastructural work to ensure that the project is ready, the time line had been thought out and the funding is available. So this is classic Christie approach to very important matters so that’s one point.

“The PLP unfortunately is feeling tremendous time pressures having squandered the better part of the last three and a half years on other initiatives, that while important, does not nearly rise to the level of importance of National Health Insurance. Now as they approach the election season, they sought to push through this shell of a programme without doing the requisite work and not realise that it is not possible for them to continue in this manner given the amount of backlash from various stakeholders, legal issues and other impediments.”

He added: “They refuse to take advice about the need for thorough consultation with stakeholders, doctors and a number of the doctors from the association are now on record as having indicated that they were not properly consulted and are unlikely to give their support unless that is done. The government did not consult with insurers in the manner that they need to and to obtain the data they required to help them make informed decisions.

“There wasn’t widespread consultation with the private sector and there wasn’t consultation with opposition forces especially the Free National Movement that was (previously) in government and had put forth a proposal in terms of how the government ought to proceed.”

He said it was hard to see how the government intended to proceed when the software and staff required to manage the system was not in place.

Mr Pintard also criticised the government for failing to present NHI legislation in Parliament. However he said he was not surprised as this was how the Christie administration had been operating for nearly four years.

On Wednesday, Mr Christie said he was unaware of any country that was able to roll out universal health care over a period of five to seven years, insisting that it is a work in progress.

“So all the talk about what is happening about delay, no charges have been laid for people to pay for this,” Mr Christie said.

“We are trying to put ourselves in the position to effectuate the right approach (and) the right positions. Therefore we continue to look carefully at what we are doing. (We are) bringing in the right advice (and) the right experts who we are making available to ourselves to ensure that all of the decisions are the right decisions.”