Dr Vinit proposes medical insurance policy

National, Normal
Source:

By ELIZABETH MIAE

THE Department of Health’s lifestyle diseases technical adviser Dr Thomas Vinit proposes that the Government introduces medical insurance to all citizens by using the benefits from natural resources.
“This is one way the Government can achieve its Vision 2050 by sharing the wealth through health and education.
“With the windfall, it is now time to set up medical insurance schemes, like the Medicare system in Australia and England so that our people can now afford the medication to save their lives, live longer and contribute to nation building,” he said.
Dr Vinit said this when commenting on the US$500 million Pacific Medical Centre to be built at Bautama in the Central province.
He commended Minister for Health Sasa Zibe for making the centre a reality.
“Once the new facility is built, it will help many locals who have to pay high travel costs down south for heart and kidney treatment.
“Without it, we are worse off.
“Those who can afford can travel overseas to seek treatment.
“Now such treatment will be available here, we can concentrate on the medical cost minus the international travel and living costs,” he added.
“The centre will be managed as the first private-public partnership project and will benefit everyone because the country does not have a world standard tertiary health services that is projected in the National Health Plan,” he said.
“I am very happy that the world standard tertiary health services in the centre will help ease and treat diseases like diabetes, hypertension and heart diseases.
“Many people who cannot afford treatment for such diseases have to remain at home and wait to die.
“They will soon have some chance of survival.
“These are the type of cases that our current hospital services cannot manage and now they have the chance to recover or live longer.
“The centre will definitely improve our clinical indicators for death due to heart diseases, diabetes complications and cancers,” he said.
The construction of the centre is scheduled to start next year and is set to be completed in 2013.