As authorities reveal more information regarding the proposed National Health Insurance Plan, some local businesspeople are becoming increasingly concerned that the scheme would drive up the cost of doing business in a country where they say business costs are already burdensome.
Minister of Health Dr. Marcus Bethel and other officials have revealed that the projected annual cost of the plan would be $235 million. Employers are expected to cover a portion of it, as will employees and the government.
“Because the cost of doing business is so high, government is now putting an additional burden on employers,” said Daryl Collins, manager of Lignum Technologies, who was one of the New Providence businesspeople who spoke with The Bahama Journal on Wednesday.
“Businesses are actually going to pass this on to the consumer so it’s a trickle down effect. My initial reaction is I wished that this would be reviewed and the businesses taken into account.”
However, Mr. Collins, who originates from Canada where there is such a scheme in place, recognizes the value of national health insurance.
Clarence Harrison, manager of The Paint Place, also spoke of the financial impact the scheme would have on businesses.
“We have enough expenses already with shipping and freight going up all the time-and increases from our vendors, so there is going to be added increases,” Mr. Harrison predicted.
Meanwhile, Raymond Albury, owner of Magic Photo, said he currently offers health insurance to his employees, an opportunity that he said only 50 percent of his staff is taking advantage of.
Mr. Albury believes while health insurance is necessary in today’s world employees should be given a choice.
He said that if the government follows that model, and offer employees a choice, it would help keep costs down for employers.
“If it is along the same lines of National Insurance, well that is something that we could look into and probably live with, but if you’re talking about double or three times what national insurance costs, well then definitely not because business-wise, I couldn’t afford it.”
Mr. Albury said he looks forward to more information regarding the national health insurance plan.
It’s something Dr. Bethel and others trying to make it a reality have promised.
Dr. Bethel explained earlier this week that, “The cost may go up to the employer; it also goes up to the employee, but a healthier workforce means greater productivity which inures to the benefit of the employee and the employer also.”
Dr. Bethel also encouraged business owners to educate themselves on the issue.
“I would say to them that they should get themselves involved in public discussion with the community forum that is now beginning and raise their questions and get answers to those questions and come to understand as opposed to living in the dark and assuming they understand the situation,” he said.
The health minister has explained that the employer and the employee would make equal contributions to the plan, which would cover visits to doctors at government and private hospitals and clinics.
It will also cover drugs prescribed by physicians; laboratory tests; surgical operations; hotel room and board; and overseas care not available in The Bahamas.
In an earlier interview with The Bahama Journal this week, Vice President of the Small Business Association Marlon Johnson expressed concerns regarding whether the plan would be ran efficiently.
But officials have indicated that the present National Insurance infrastructure in place would aid in getting the health insurance plan up and running as smoothly as possible.
Dr. Perry Gomez, the project director for the plan, recently told The Bahama Journal that the scheme will be mandatory for everyone.
“There is no exemption in the national health scheme,” Dr. Perry said. “Everybody must participate; that’s the only way it could work because everything is calculated on the entire population being involved.”
Dr. Bethel, meanwhile, said, “Self employed workers would have to contribute the full amount. The government is satisfied that the proposed contribution rate of 5.3 percent is adequate to meet financing requirements of the plan and should also be affordable to the large majority of the working population.”
He has also touted the benefits such a plan would have for thousands of Bahamians who cannot afford health insurance.
Ellis Kemp, who works at Pinder’s Custom Brokerage, applauded the government’s efforts to make the scheme a reality.
“The idea of them having this thing put into place may be something good for everybody here in The Bahamas,” he told The Bahama Journal on Wednesday. “You have a whole lot of people who really can’t afford the healthcare and it would be good for them.”
By: Stephen Gay, The Bahama Journal
